The Los Angeles Lakers might only be able to return four of their five starters from last season.
Lakers forward Rui Hachimura could potentially be the odd man out for the team in free agency this offseason, Dave McMenamin of ESPN reported this week. McMenamin adds that Hachimura may need to explore the market in order to find a desired deal.
Additionally, McMenamin notes that the Lakers have interest in re-signing both guard Marcus Smart and sharpshooter Luke Kennard (which could come at the cost of Hachimura). You can read McMenamin’s full report on the situation here.
Hachimura, 28, just completed his third season with the Lakers and averaged 11.5 points and 3.3 rebounds per game during the regular season. But he came on strong during the playoffs and averaged 17.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game while starting in every single game for L.A.
The ex-lottery pick Hachimura is a strong, efficient jump shooter who also brings plenty of defensive versatility at 6-foot-8. But now an unrestricted free agent this summer, Hachimura may have played himself out of the range where the Lakers would financially be able to retain him.
On top of that, the Lakers have some other big priorities this offseason, including trying to bring back both Austin Reaves and LeBron James and attempting to meet Luka Doncic’s ultimatum for them to add an impact center (such as this recently-rumored target). That means Hachimura is low on the team’s agenda and might have to look elsewhere in order to get paid commensurate to his true market value.
