The 2024-25 season will be a big one for Rui Hachimura as he enters the second year of the three-year extension he signed with the Los Angeles Lakers the previous summer.
Hachimura has been a strong contributor for the Lakers since he was traded from the Washington Wizards and now will get a chance to start for the team when the regular season begins. Head coach JJ Redick announced rather early that the starting five will be D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Hachimura so the roster is already clear on what their roles will be.
As soon as Redick was officially made Los Angeles’ new head coach, he discussed his vision for Hachimura and what he wants to see from him. The two have talked and it seems like Hachimura took his new head coach’s words to heart as he said he is focused on shooting more 3-pointers and crashing the offensive glass.
Hachimura recently discussed how important it is to have the same core group of players and how that can help them this season. “I think over the course of the summer, we kind of kept in touch and talked about just basketball, Bron and AD at the Olympics, DLo came to the Olympics and all that, Vando was there too,” Hachimura said.
“So yeah, our chemistry has been great even though we just got back last week or whatever. It doesn’t feel like it, I feel like we’ve been still building the chemistry so it’s been great.”
The Japan native also praised Redick for his ability to relate to the players and how easy it is to understand the message he is trying to get across.
“He was a really good player, so before the coaching and stuff, we just respected him as a player. I played against him, it’s crazy, like two or three years ago, I remember that. So we understand his philosophy and what he’s talking about and stuff. It’s easy for us to understand.”
The early returns on Redick have been positive to say the least as players like Hachimura already seem to be buying in. However, they’ll need to prove that what’s being preached and taught behind closed doors translates to games.
Rui Hachimura says Jalen Hood-Schifino has stuck out during training camp
Training camp is in full swing and through the first handful of practices, Rui Hachimura singled out Jalen Hood-Schifino as someone that’s stood out.
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