Rui Hachimura has made excellent strides as an overall player since the Los Angeles Lakers traded for him back in 2023. Even though he was a former lottery pick Hachimura felt like a player who hadn’t reached his potential, but now he had grown into one of the most important players on the Lakers’ roster.
One major reason why he has thrived with the Lakers has been his improvements as a 3-point shooter. Hachimura was never bad from deep, but it also never felt like a strength. That has changed in a big way, however, as the forward has become an absolute sniper from long range.
Hachimura shot a career-high 44.3% from 3-point range during the 2025-26 season, setting a new Lakers franchise record for 3-point percentage. The previous record was held by Valdimir Radmanovic, who shot 44.1% in 2009, however, he played just 46 games for the Lakers that year as he was traded to the Charlotte Hornets in the middle of the season.
It speaks to the work that Hachimura has put in over the years that he was able to set this new record. He has now shot at least 41% from 3-point range in each of the last three seasons, proving that his shooting is no fluke.
His offense will be even more important for the Lakers as they enter the playoffs extremely shorthanded. With the team’s two leading scorers in Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves both out due to injury, Hachimura will be more of a primary offensive option against the Houston Rockets. Hachimura and Luke Kennard are easily the Lakers’ best 3-point shooters and the team will need them to space the floor so LeBron James can operate and attack the paint.
Hachimura certainly chose the right year to set this mark as his contract is set to expire meaning he will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He is someone that has made his mark on this franchise and the Lakers will surely do everything they can to make sure he remains with the team. But after a shooting season like this, he will likely have plenty of suitors in the offseason.
Rui Hachimura gives his keys to Lakers’ success this season
The Lakers had their ups and downs this season, but eventually were able to come together down the stretch of the season, looking like a real contender before injuries came crashing down. As for why the Lakers experienced great success this season, Hachimura believes it was all about the chemistry on this team.
“I think it was chemistry,” he said after the season finale. “I talked a lot about chemistry, and how important, especially in basketball, but in team sports, we all need each other. I think to get through this season, especially 82 games is really long, a lot of things happening, injuries, different lineups, trades, everything. So, I think that this year we had good chemistry to fight through 82 games.”
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