Former Gonzaga star works out with sumo wrestlers during NBA offseason

Rui Hachimura's offseason training regimen during his Los Angeles Lakers tenure has ranged from personal workouts with the NBA's all-time leading scorer to developing his power and strength with Japanese sumo wrestlers.

Two summers after his role as LeBron James' understudy made headlines, the Gonzaga star and Toyama, Japan, native's latest conditioning plan is garnering publicity ahead of his seventh season as a pro.

Hachimura recently gave his Instagram followers some insight into what the 27-year-old forward has been up to lately, which evidently has included a few sessions with pro sumo wrestlers.

During a live stream recording on his Instagram account, the 6-foot-8 Hachimura practiced his starting stance, placing both of his fists on the ground while maintaining a crouched stance; then exploding across the mat with his hands mimicking where they would be if there was another wrestler blocking his path in front of him.

Alas, Hachimura was not seen in any Butsukari drills that is, where one wrestler charges into another to work on their explosiveness and follow-through technique.

Though there were certainly some overlaps between basketball and sumo on display in his workout, such as balance, leverage and footwork, to name a few.

Hachimura put together one of the more productive and efficient seasons of his six-year NBA career, recording 13.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game on 50.9% shooting from the field and 41.3% from downtown, while starting in 57 games for the Lakers in the 2024-25 campaign.

He also recorded a career-high 1.5 defensive win shares according to basketball-reference.com, underscoring his improvements on the defensive end of the floor since entering the league with the Washington Wizards as the No.

9 overall pick in 2019.

Hachimura, entering the final year of a three-year, $51 million contract he inked in 2023, is eligible to sign a veteran extension with the Lakers this offseason.

Trade rumors and speculation have become part of his reality while wearing the purple and gold threads, though no serious deals have materialized amid the growing suppositions..

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