Lakers: Grading The Rui Hachimura-Kendrick Nunn Trade For LA and Washington
Today, your Los Angeles Lakers officially decided to improve their roster.
LA is in the midst of trading the expiring $5.3 million contract of little-used reserve "combo" guard Kendrick Nunn (although he's really just a shooting guard in a point guard's body who can't shoot that well) and three second-round draft picks to the Washington Wizards in exchange for promising young forward Rui Hachimura.
So what do we at All Lakers think of the deal from both sides? Allow us to enlighten you with our trade grades, wherein we assess how both the Lakers and Wiz fared in the deal.
The Lakers Side
Alex: This is the exact kind of marginal move that LA, at the absolute bare minimum, needed to make. Still just 24, Hachimura is a young, athletic forward with size, length, shooting ability, and potentially untapped upside. Nunn has been cooked for a while, and was not going to even have a consistent home in Darvin Ham's rotation once everyone was healthy again. That the Lakers were able to trade for a player of Hachimura's caliber without giving up one of their two highly-coveted future first-round picks, in 2027 and 2029, is pretty great.
All that said, the Lakers are fielding a team with LeBron James and Anthony Davis that is just a few seasons removed from winning an NBA title. At age 38, James is the textbook definition of a win-now player. He's playing inspired basketball right now, but how much longer can he possibly remain at this level? At 22-25, LA isn't exactly lighting the league on fire. If he stays healthy, Hachimura will help the team's depth, and on a tiny Lakers team the versatile 6'8" forward might even find his way to a starting role before too long. But the Lakers could have had Myles Turner and Buddy Hield this summer. It would still be ideal if the team could add more top-tier talent around James and Davis, even if it means sacrificing some more valuable draft equity. So while this is a great deal considering who's being added and what it cost the Lakers, it's not going to move the needle as much as some other transactions still on the table could.
Alex's Lakers Trade Grade: B+
Noah: Laker fans rejoice! The Los Angeles Lakers made a trade! And even better, they actually made a good one!
The Lakers' acquisition of former lottery pick Rui Hachimura is the exact kind of move this team needed. Hachimura instantly becomes one of the better three-point shooters on the team, and adds a ton of length and versatility as a 6’8” wing.
Hachimura has struggled with injuries in his career, but when he’s healthy, he’s a solid scorer and can space the floor as well as anyone. He’s a career 35.6% shooter from deep, but last year, he shot the lights out, at an impressive 44.7% clip from deep. If he can shoot like that, he’ll be a seamless fit for LA.
Hachimura is also up for an extension as a restricted free agent. The Lakers have made it clear they want to keep him long term, and he would be the fourth player under team control next year, after LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Max Christie. The 25-year-old will be a great addition on the roster, providing a ton of youth and potential next to Christie. Also, the value the Lakers got in this deal was superb.
Noah's Lakers Trade Grade: A-
The Wizards Side
Noah: The Wizards definitely didn’t want to give up on the former No. 9 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, but like I said, he’s up for an extension this offseason, and it doesn’t sound like the two sides were close on a deal. The Wizards have some other guys they want to bring back — mainly former Laker Kyle Kuzma — and with Bradley Beal’s monstrous deal, they can’t keep everyone.
While I don’t blame them for trading Hachimura, this does feel like they sold a little low. Kendrick Nunn is no more than a salary-filler, and three second-round picks isn't exactly the best return for a former lottery pick.
The Lakers obviously weren’t going to trade one of their coveted first-rounders, but there were other teams interested in the young forward. I assume the Wizards did their due diligence, however, so they were at least able to secure some picks that they likely hope will be in the early portion of the second-round. Still, this isn't a great return for a player with Hachimura's potential, especially for a team that's heading to the lottery this season.
Noah's Wizards Trade Grade: C
Alex: The Wizards have long been the Eastern Conference equivalent of the Sacramento Kings. Bad, but just close enough to mediocre that they're always reticent to make any move that could be construed as hitting the "reset" button. In the case of this deal, Washington offloaded the better player and opted to add future draft capital, which tells me that the team at least is aware it's 20-26 and currently the 12th seed in the East. Could that mean semi-All-Star shooting guard Bradley Beal, another rumored Lakers trade target, could be had for the right price, too?
I've never loved Beal as a fit for LA, because he's a bit of a ball hog who doesn't defend and gets hurt a fair amount, and though he might solve LA's biggest problem on offense (he shoots a ton of threes), his poor perimeter defense could put even more pressure on Anthony Davis to patrol the paint. That said, he's certainly an intriguing talent, and would mightily improve this current Lakers club.
Per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Washington felt that it was not going to be able to get an extension deal done with Hachimura, so it makes sense to move him for picks now rather than let him walk in the summer for possibly nothing (although the team certainly could have tried to execute a sign-and-trade, as well). It's not entirely clear what the Wiz's game plan with the rest of its roster is now, but I think it might make sense for the club to have a bit of a fire sale and start fresh, especially with Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson available in this year's draft. That said, Hachimura was a solid talent under team control this summer. The Wizards didn't have to do this.
Kendrick Nunn is neither a "win-now" player nor a "win-later" player. He's looked terrible since coming back from a bone bruise injury that cost him the entire 2021-22 season and has been buried on LA's depth chart. He's averaging 6.7 points on .406/.325/.810 shooting splits and 1.4 rebounds in just 13.5 minutes per game. He was just included because he's on an expiring deal and LA needed to match Hachimura's salary.
Alex's Wizards Trade Grade: C-
