Former Los Angeles Lakers starting forward Rui Hachimura made a noteworthy move to the Los Angeles Clippers this past offseason. NBA free agency saw the Lakers prioritizing other players over Hachimura. However, the veteran forward wanted to stay in the same Los Angeles market for the other team. Hachimura also revealed that there are difficult challenges playing for the more intense Lakers market.
The following quote from Hachimura came from a Clutch Points interview:
“It’s tough to play for the Lakers. It’s a big crowd, big shine. The lights are brighter. The thing I always say is that I’ve always had that, but it’s just what the team’s situation is. I have to adjust. I can fit in, to any type of team, but I think that’s the one thing that people always talk about. I have more than that to my game, yes, but I always play for the team wherever I’m at, so whatever they ask me to do, I’ll do.”
Many players have referenced this in the past since the Lakers are considered the NBA equal to the New York Yankees or Dallas Cowboys. National attention and media pressure get added to the equation. Legendary players like Russell Westbrook and Dwight Howard became hated over not living up to the Lakers’ expectations.
Rui Hachimura Felt Lakers Took Him For Granted
Another interesting quote from the interview featured him discussing feeling overlooked for some of his best Lakers’ seasons. Hachimura explored the idea of sacrificing when playing on the same roster as LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
“They think that one season, I was good, but I keep doing it,” Hachimura told ClutchPoints. “I consistently — like three years in a row — was shooting 45 percent on threes and 50 or 60 percent from mid-range, and I was always top five in shooting for three years. It’s, of course, because of the team and how we operated. We had LeBron [James], [Anthony Davis], Luka [Doncic].”
The entire Lakers tenure of Hachimura saw him needing to be a secondary role player with all the stars in the rotation. Even the last few years saw Austin Reaves emerging as a near All-Star to warrant getting slotted over Hachimura.
Rui Hachimura Hoping To Prove More For Clippers
Lakers fans have shown love to Hachimura, and he returned the favor in his first game as an opponent. Despite referencing the challenges here, Hachimura felt he did a good job and helped the Lakers in whatever role he was asked of.
The Clippers have a tough path to relevance since they were stripped of many draft picks as part of the Kawhi Leonard fallout. Hachimura is part of the new core looking to work together as a team to overachieve for a playoff spot.
The group of Darius Garland, Brandon Ingram, and Hachimura are the most successful veterans to join the roster over the past year. Hachimura has the green light to take more shots and do more than just standing in the corner waiting for threes like his Lakers time.
Rui Hachimura Reveals What He Disliked About Lakers Tenure