Rui Hachimura is staying in Los Angeles. Just not with the team that traded for him two years ago.
The forward agreed to a two-year, $28 million deal with the Clippers on Monday, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. It’s a signing that flips the script on what most people expected when free agency opened. The Lakers had made Hachimura a qualifying offer earlier this summer, making him a restricted free agent, and conventional wisdom said they’d match most offers to keep him. Instead, he’s heading across the hall.
What the Clippers Are Getting
Hachimura averaged 13.6 points and 4.3 rebounds last season while shooting 42.2 percent from three. That shooting is the key here. The Clippers badly need floor spacers around Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, especially after losing Marcus Morris Sr. and seeing Nicolas Batum age out of a consistent role. Hachimura is 26 years old, built like a small-ball four, and has shown he can guard multiple positions when he’s locked in. The question has always been consistency. Some nights he looks like a reliable third option. Other nights he disappears completely.
But for $14 million a year? That’s a bet the Clippers were willing to make. And it’s not hard to see why.
The Lakers Side of This
Los Angeles had a decision to make. They could match the offer sheet and keep Hachimura, or let him walk and preserve cap flexibility for other moves. They chose the latter. The Lakers have been aggressive in free agency — they added Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, and Jaxson Hayes already — and they clearly decided Hachimura’s price point didn’t fit their broader plan. Maybe that’s about saving money for a bigger move down the road. Maybe it’s about believing in Jarred Vanderbilt or Rui’s eventual replacement coming from within. The team hasn’t commented publicly on why they passed.
Fans online are split. Some are furious the Lakers let a 26-year-old shooter walk for what looks like a team-friendly deal. Others point out that Hachimura struggled in the playoffs against Denver and never fully earned a consistent rotation spot under Darvin Ham. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.
What This Means for the City
There’s a weird symmetry here. The Lakers and Clippers have been circling each other for years — trading wins, swapping role players, fighting for the same free agents. Hachimura’s move doesn’t change the balance of power in LA by itself. But it does add a little fuel to a rivalry that’s been more about real estate than actual bad blood. Now there’s a guy who spent a season and a half wearing purple and gold who’ll be in the same building wearing the other colors. That makes the next Lakers-Clippers game a little more interesting, even if it’s just for one subplot.
More details on the contract structure and Hachimura’s official comments are expected later this week. For now, the Clippers got a shooter. The Lakers moved on. And the city gets another name to yell at when the two teams meet.
Leave a Comment