The Los Angeles Lakers have been as active as any team in the NBA during the early stages of the 2026 offseason. Los Angeles drafted Cameron Carr, re-signed Austin Reaves, parted with LeBron James, Luke Kennard, and Marcus Smart, and acquired Quentin Grimes, Walker Kessler, Sandro Mamukelashvili, and Collin Sexton.
The one thing the Lakers haven't yet done is land on whether or not they should or even can re-sign Rui Hachimura. Thankfully, conflicting reports suggest it's not as hopeless of a pursuit as it once seemed.
Los Angeles' offseason activity has left it with minimal financial flexibility. That's made it increasingly difficult to believe that Hachimura, who's in the prime of his career at 28 years of age, will re-sign with a Lakers side that may struggle to offer him the type of deal he's looking for. A July 1 report from The Stein Line seemed to seal the purple and gold's fate on that front.
According to Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, Hachimura has drawn interest from the Brooklyn Nets and Detroit Pistons, and is expected to ultimately leave Los Angeles.
"Hachimura, for that matter, is also believed to still be drawing interest from Brooklyn and Detroit and is regarded as increasingly likely to join James. Smart and Phoenix-bound Luke Kennard out the exit door in Lakerland."
It's since been reported by Dave McMenamin of ESPN, however, that the fact that Hachimura has yet to sign elsewhere is viewed by those around the NBA as a sign that the Lakers could be working behind the scenes to bring him back.
"That Hachimura remains unsigned caused several league sources to wonder whether the Lakers are planning some sort of trade or using the stretch provision on perhaps Jarred Vanderbilt or Deandre Ayton to be able to offer Hachimura more."
Though it's unclear how the Hachimura sweepstakes will ultimately end, there's seemingly still hope that he could return to Los Angeles in 2026-27.
ESPN sources wonder if Lakers are angling to re-sign Rui Hachimura
Los Angeles' options on the Hachimura front are admittedly thin. They'll have to offload salary in order to clear the space to make a competitive offer and don't exactly have the most desirable trade assets to convince rival executives to help them keep their sharpshooting forward.
Crazier things have happened in the NBA this week alone, however, and McMenamin's mention of Deandre Ayton and Jarred Vanderbilt offers insight into how Los Angeles could prove nothing is impossible.
Ayton is owed an expiring $8,104,000 for the 2026-27 season. Vanderbilt, meanwhile, is due $12,428,571 for the 2026-27 campaign and has a $13,285,714 player option for 2027-28. Outside of franchise player Luka Doncic, they're the only returning Lakers due to make more than Jake LaRavia's $6 million in 2026-27.
That seemingly puts them at the forefront of the attempt to re-sign Hachimura, as Ayton and Vanderbilt's combined $20,532,571 could be moved for valuable wiggle room.
Lakers could make a trade or use stretch provision for cap space
The hurdle is that the teams with remaining cap space are unlikely to take on Ayton and/or Vanderbilt out of the goodness of their hearts. They'd likely want draft compensation or another player on the Lakers' roster whom they actually covet. That makes the stretch provision a more likely outcome.
The question, of course, is whether or not that would actually create enough space to make Hachimura an offer he would consider.
Hachimura made $18,259,259 in 2025-26 and is likely to be looking for a contract in a similar range after turning in a solid regular season and a stellar postseason. He averaged 11.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.7 three-point field goals made on .514/.443/.694 shooting across 68 regular season appearances, and shot a mind-blowing 56.9 percent from beyond the arc during the playoffs.
That's given the Lakers clear reason to want him back. Thankfully, hope isn't yet lost, as Los Angeles appears to still have the ability to capture Hachimura's attention in free agency.
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