Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura is about to enter unrestricted free agency, and he certainly enhanced his value during the 2026 postseason.
Hachimura averaged 17.5 points per game on a torrid 56.9% from 3 in the playoffs. When the Lakers desperately needed a second scorer to support LeBron James during the first round, Hachimura did not shy away from the opportunity. He, along with Luke Kennard, elevated his game when the lights were the brightest, and plenty of offseason suitors noticed.
Rui Hachimura is flying under the radar in free agency
It’s amazing that more people aren’t discussing Hachimura. He’s still only 28 years old, meaning he theoretically has plenty of prime years left. At 6-foot-8, Hachimura can play the 3 or the 4, which gives teams looking to play “small ball” (with a single big) a little more size and strength at the 4 if they plug in Hachimura there. The Lakers did plenty of that, and they’d love to retain Hachimura to do more of it in 2026-27.
The Spurs are an absolutely perfect fit for Rui Hachimura
Speaking of small ball, have you noticed the lineups that the San Antonio Spurs are throwing out there in the NBA Finals, and have rolled with all season long?
It’s basically Victor Wembanyama and three or even four guards most of the time. There are plenty of lineups where Stephon Castle at 6-foot-6 is the second-tallest Spur on the court outside of Wemby or backup center Luke Kornet.
Hachimura would fix that size imbalance by giving the Spurs a big body on the wing (and at the 4) who can really stretch the floor with his 3-point shooting (creating good spacing for Wemby and San Antonio’s dynamic driving guards). He’d also provide valuable rebounding, seeing as the Spurs often struggle to keep opponents off the offensive glass due to their lineups.
Do the Spurs have enough cap space to sign Rui Hachimura?
San Antonio's in a better spot to pay Hachimura a respectable figure than the Lakers are. The Spurs have Harrison Barnes' $19 million cap hit coming off the books, as well as Kelly Olynyk's $13.4 million. While San Antonio will be signing Wemby to a massive rookie extension this summer, there's no reason to believe that they can't acquire Hachimura in free agency.
For Hachimura, why wouldn't he want to join a Spurs team that's much closer to contending than the Lakers? It's a temptation that, if activated by San Antonio's front office, could very well end Hachimura's tenure in LA.
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