EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The Los Angeles Lakers extended qualifying offers to forward Rui Hachimura and guard Austin Reaves, the team announced Tuesday. As a result of the qualifying offers, Hachimura and Reaves become restricted free agents.
After joining the Lakers via trade from Washington on Jan. 23, Hachimura appeared in 33 games (nine starts) and averaged 9.6 points and 4.7 rebounds in 22.4 minutes per game to end the regular season. During the 2023 playoffs, Hachimura averaged 12.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 16 games (one start), shooting 55.7 percent from the field and 48.7 percent from 3-point range, good for the sixth-best mark in the playoffs.
The 25-year-old was the only player in the postseason to shoot at least 55 percent from the field (min. 10 FGA), 48 percent from 3-point range and 88 percent from the free-throw line. On April 16 versus Memphis, Hachimura scored 29 points to go with six rebounds and one assist off the bench, tying Mychal Thompson in 1988 for the most points scored by a Lakers reserve in a playoff game. Hachimura then finished with 20 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal on April 19 at the Grizzlies, becoming the first Lakers player since Magic Johnson in 1996 to score at least 20 points off the bench in consecutive playoff games.
Last season, Reaves appeared in 64 games (22 starts) for the Lakers, averaging 13.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 28.8 minutes. Reaves joined Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard as the only players in the league to shoot at least 50 percent from the field, 39 percent from 3-point range and 85 percent from the free-throw line (min. 200 FTM). The 25-year-old scored in double figures in 42 games, including 10 games with at least 20 points and one 30-point performance.
On March 19 versus Orlando, Reaves finished with a career-high 35 points while adding six rebounds and six assists, becoming the first undrafted Lakers player to score at least 35 points and just the second player in team history to tally at least 35 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists off the bench. In his second season with the Lakers, Reaves improved his career averages in scoring and assists, as well as his shooting percentages from the field, 3-point range and the charity stripe. In 16 playoff games (all starts) last season, Reaves averaged 16.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists while shooting 46.4 percent from the field, 44.3 percent from long distance and 89.5 percent from the free-throw line. He scored in double figures in 15 of his 16 playoff appearances, including seven games with at least 20 points.
Stats and information courtesy of Los Angeles Lakers Media Relations.
