Rui Hachimura, who played for the Lakers until the 2025-26 season, joined the Clippers, who are their local rivals, in free agency this summer. The 28-year-old forward recently appeared at a Japanese event where he wore his new jersey.
Rui’s first look in a Clippers jersey 🥲 pic.twitter.com/Z42Wdf9QuY
— 𝐏𝐮𝐫𝐩𝑮𝒐𝒍𝒅 🏆 (@PurpGoldLakers) August 5, 2026
Subsequently, he posted pictures of himself on his Instagram story, which went viral on social media. It was especially full of unhappy Lakers fans who did not appreciate seeing their former player in rival colors. The Lakers fans flooded social media with criticism of Hachimura.
“My fandom for him is on pause until he leaves.”
“This looks so wrong.”
“I’m so upset. I knew he was leaving, but why the Clippers, man.”
“This is just gross to look at.”
“Gold looks way better on him.”
“That jersey looks disgusting.”
During his three and a half seasons in the purple and gold jersey, Hachimura averaged 12.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.1 assists while going 51.6% from the field and 41.5% from beyond the arc.
In the 2025-26 season, he averaged 11.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 0.8 assists while going 51.4% from the field and 44.3% from behind the three-point line.
While his efficiency seemed similar, his numbers fell in every major category over the last two seasons. Moreover, considering the defensive concerns that were observed around the league for Hachimura may have been a contributing factor as to why the Lakers did not extend the sharpshooting forward.
Earlier in July, Dan Woike, a Lakers insider with The Athletic, dove into why the Lakers may have decided to let Hachimura go in free agency.
“I think perhaps he had too limited an offensive skill set. Made every shot, but they want guys who can dribble, pass, and shoot… I think they just wanted a higher-impact defender,” Woike said in his appearance on the Zach Lowe show.
Hachimura recently spoke to Tomer Azerly of ClutchPoints and explained why he left the Lakers to join their cross-town rivals. And while he was more focused on why he picked the Clippers in free agency, he did not shed any light on why he didn’t stay with the Lakers, a franchise whose fans clearly still loved him.
The Lakers reportedly looked at Sandro Mamukelashvili as a direct and cheaper replacement for Hachimura in free agency as they splurged $129.5 million on a player like Walker Kessler and signed Austin Reaves to a $180 million long-term extension.
Evidently, the Lakers fans are not happy to see Hachimura go, especially to a rival like the Clippers. It will be fascinating to see how Hachimura gets treated by supporters when the two local rivals meet four times in the 2026-27 season. That will surely be an intense atmosphere to play in.
