Rui Hachimura is proving his worth to the Lakers in the playoffs

Rui Hachimura, whom the Lakers traded for in January, is playing at the top of his game at a time they really need him to.

The Los Angeles Lakers started their midseason remodeling project in late January by shipping Kendrick Nunn, a guard who was used sparingly, and three second-round draft picks to the Washington Wizards for forward Rui Hachimura.

In 33 regular-season games with L.A., he averaged 9.6 points a game, which was significantly down from the 13 points a contest he averaged with the Wizards prior to the trade. Overall his play was up and down.

Many times, L.A. had trouble incorporating him into its offense, relegating him to a spectator beyond the 3-point line instead of an active participant.

But so far in the first round of the playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies, Hachimura has lived up to the potential the team saw in him.

In Game 1, he sparked a third-quarter rally and was a major factor in the Lakers’ 128-112 win with a team-high 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting and 5-of-6 from 3-point range.

Then in Game 2, he kept the team in the contest by scoring an efficient 20 points.

The Japan native has always been a very reliable and potent midrange scorer, but lately, he has also been lighting it up from downtown.

Although he isn’t known as a defender, he has had moments on that end of the floor. In a late-season win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, he defended Karl-Anthony Towns well at times, despite being four inches shorter and nearly 20 pounds lighter than him.

Hachimura has credited members of the Lakers, particularly player development coach Phil Handy, for making him feel “very confident and comfortable” on his new team.