Lakers News: After Rui Hachimura's Big Night, Darvin Ham Issues Mea Culpa For Healthy Scratch

The Lakers reserve enjoyed a terrific first playoff game for LA.

Los Angeles Lakers reserve power forward Rui Hachimura had about the best night he could possibly (realistically) have for a playoff debut on Sunday night, when he scored 29 points while shooting 11-of-14 from the floor (5-of-6 from deep) and 2-of-2 from the foul line. He also grabbed eight rebounds and passed for one assist.

The 6'8" big man, a restricted free agent this summer, was the high scorer for an LA team that surprisingly vanquished the Memphis Grizzlies, in Memphis, for their playoff series opener.

He's come a long way considering his inconsistent first few months with Los Angeles. The nadir of his tenure thus far was probably the day he was a healthy scratch in a 118-108 Chicago Bulls victory in LA on March 26th.

Jovan Buha of The Athletic writes that LA head coach Darvin Ham has now taken responsibility for sitting such an imperative player completely, despite his high ceiling as a stretch four contributor.

“That was kinda on me," Ham conceded, per Buha. "I went rogue on our rotation.”

Buha adds that Ham appreciates the way Hachimura has bounced back following that benching. Across his seven games following the Bulls contest, he averaged 10.6 points on 51.6% shooting, 5.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 0.7 blocks a night.

LA is currently trailing the Grizzlies, without Ja Morant, Steven Adams or Brandon Clarke, by double digits at the half of their second game in this series, 44-59. In 14:60, Hachimura is second among Lakers scorers (LeBron James leads with 12 points) with nine points on 3-of-5 shooting from the floor (1-of-1 from deep) and 2-of-4 shooting from the charity stripe. He's also notched two rebounds, an assist and a steal.

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