Rui Hachimura has been one of the unsung heroes for the Los Angeles Lakers over the past couple of seasons, but he got his moment to shine against the Toronto Raptors. As the final seconds wound down in a tie game, LeBron James attacked the basket and found Hachimura wide open in the corner as he knocked down a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Lakers a 123-120 victory over the Raptors to kick off their three-game road trip.
In the Lakers’ prior game, Hachimura was held scoreless and took just one shot, even commenting afterwards about how the team needed to get back to moving the ball better. Lo and behold that came to fruition in their next contest with Hachimura being the ultimate beneficiary.
And after his huge moment, Hachimura reflected on the shot, noting that it was the first buzzer-beater he has ever hit while calling it a great feeling to knock it down, via NBA on X:
“I think I’ve never had a buzzer-beater like that, so it was like one of those plays that every basketball player dreams of. It was a great feeling.”
The play was set up beautifully as Austin Reaves handled a double-team perfectly and found LeBron in an advantageous situation where he could attack and leave Hachimura wide open. In fact, Hachimura would reveal that James told him the ball was coming to him on that play before it even happened, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“I’ve never hit a game-winner. But Bron told me right before it, he said I got you. He said it’s gonna come to you. That was it.”
This once again speaks to James’ basketball IQ as he could see the play develop before it even started, as well as his trust in his teammates. He knew the Raptors would blitz Reaves and that if he drove, Hachimura’s man would help leaving him open in the corner. At that point it was simply a matter of Hachimura doing what he has been doing for three seasons now.
Hachimura is knocking down 46.8% from 3-point range this year and if it holds it will be his third consecutive season above 40% from deep. His game has grown exponentially since joining the Lakers and he continues to be one of the most important players to this team’s success, coming through time and time again when he is needed.
Lakers’ LeBron James not concerned with double-digit scoring streak ending
Of course, LeBron James could have chosen to take the game-winning shot himself and, had he converted, would have also kept his consecutive games streak of double-digit scoring alive. But as has always been the case for the Lakers superstar, making the right play and winning was more important.
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