Lakers' Rui Hachimura Injury Status Downgraded vs Bulls

Ricardo Sandoval | Mar 27, 2025

Dec 25, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura (28) before the game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers starting forward Rui Hachimura will not play against the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday.

The Athletic's Jovan Buha shared via X.

Lakers' injury report vs. Chicago:
-- Rui Hachimura, who started and played 28 minutes last night, is out. pic.twitter.com/f3l3bO3ZyW

— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) March 27, 2025

The Lakers have ruled Hachimura out on the second night of a back-to-back. The 27-year-old is out due to his left knee injury, which caused him to miss 12 games in late February/ early March.

His absence from Thursday's game comes as no surprise. The Lakers want to ensure he is as fresh as possible for the playoffs. That's the ultimate goal for the Lakers, who have a great chance to finish inside the top six in the standings in the loaded Western Conference.

Hachimura was spectacular and hit timely buckets late in Wednesday's Lakers' thrilling win over the Indiana Pacers. Hachimura finished the game with 14 points on 80 percent shooting from the field, four rebounds, and one assist in 28 minutes of action.

In the season, Hachimura is averaging 13.0 points per game, 5.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 0.8 steals while shooting 50.7 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from three in 31.6 minutes and 53 games.

The Lakers have nine games left in the season before their Bulls' matchup. Los Angeles recently hosted the Bulls on Saturday, and that game did not go well for the Lakers.

L.A. suffered arguably their worst loss of the season and their worst loss in quite a while. The Lakers will look to seek revenge on the Bulls and start a new winning streak.

The Lakers are the road favorites in this matchup, holding a -3.5 spread.

This will be L.A.'s first and only visit to the Windy City this season.
The Bulls have struggled at home, posting a 13-22 record while allowing 119.7 points per game and being outscored by an average of 2.4 points.

Meanwhile, the Lakers are 16-19 in road contests and hold an 18-19 record in games decided by double digits.

Chicago has been in strong form recently, winning eight of its last 10 games. In contrast, the Lakers have gone 4-6 over that span, averaging 112.2 points, 41.5 rebounds, 25.6 assists, 7.5 steals, and 3.1 blocks per game while shooting 46.4 percent from the field. Their opponents, however, have averaged 118.2 points per game.

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For more news and notes on the Los Angeles Lakers, visit Los Angeles Lakers on SI.