The contract has not been renewed yet, what is the future prospect of 8-inch base with the Lakers?

In a recent episode of The Zach Lowe Show, Zach Lowe and Sam Amick introduced some potential contract extension candidates this season, including Lakers forward Rui Hachimura.

Amick said that he does not expect the Lakers to renew Hachimura because they want to maintain long-term financial flexibility, which may allow them to compete for the maximum free agent in 2026 or 2027. Lowe agreed, but added that he expected there would be "some discussion" about an extension because Hachimura is "an interesting candidate" for an extension.

Lowe said: I think Hachimura is very good, I think he is actually underrated. When I hear discussions about who would come off the bench if they decide to sign Marcus Smart, he's the de facto answer. I understand that because it's not going to be Deandre Ayton, you're not going to start small. And it won’t be any of LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves. I just think, I don't know the answer to any of the questions the Lakers might have is like not being a 40% or so 3-point shooter, playing around star players, some one-on-one skills and defensive versatility.

Lowe did say that, unlike Austin Reeves, the Lakers never had a realistic chance to extend his contract this offseason and that Hachimura would be eligible for enough money to "pique his interest." The question is whether the Lakers are willing to offer him that salary before he becomes a free agent next offseason.

Hachimura will earn approximately $18.25 million next season, which is the final year of his contract. The NBA's latest collective bargaining agreement increases the amount teams can offer players for contract extensions, from 120% of the previous CBA salary to 140% of the current salary. This means that Hachimura's renewal fee may be as high as $27.6 million, and will increase by 8% per year thereafter.

This is the maximum offer the Lakers can offer Hachimura and the amount of salary cap space he is expected to take up each year based on current cap estimates. However, salary cap percentage projections have a lot of room for change, and can more often be viewed as a ballpark range rather than a precise amount.

2026-27: $27,608,000 (16.6%)

2027-28: $29,653,037 (17.0%)

2028-29: $31,698,074 (17.3%)

2029-30: 3,374 $3,111 (17.5%)

Total: $114,522,072

This $27.6 million max salary will place Hachimura between Draymond Green ($27.7 million) and Trey Murphy III ($27 million) in the 2026-27 season. He would be slightly ahead of Jaden McDaniels ($26.2 million), who is entering the third year of his five-year, $131 million extension in 2026-27. De'Andre Hunter ($24.9 million), Jabari Smith Jr. ($23.6 million), Naz Reid ($23.3 million) and Cameron Johnson ($23.1 million) also fall roughly into this range.

Of course the Lakers don't have to offer Hachimura his full maximum extension, and they may look to P.J. Washington's recent four-year, $88.8 million contract extension with the Dallas Mavericks as a template to follow. Washington is expected to take up only 12-13% of the Mavericks' cap space during the trade, rather than 16-17%.

As Hachimura enters the final year of his contract, he will be eligible for an extension anytime between now and June 30. With that in mind, the Lakers may be in no rush to re-sign him. They can see what happens as the season progresses before making a long-term commitment.

Earlier in the offseason, the Lakers began to look ahead to the Doncic-led era, and they were fiercely protecting their long-term contract space. However, The Athletic's Dan Walker recently wrote that the Lakers "had declined an offer earlier this summer to sign a contract beyond the 2025-26 season," but that Doncic signed a three-year max extension with them that "pushes L.A.'s priorities in a more positive direction."

Both Walker and longtime NBA reporter Mark Stein mentioned that this is more likely to involve trades or outside additions. It's less clear whether they're willing to cut future cap space. If the Lakers don't re-sign Hachimura by June 30, he will become an unrestricted free agent next summer. More than a half-dozen teams are currently expected to have cap space next offseason, so they could be at risk of losing him for nothing even though they hold his Bird rights. These allow the Lakers to re-sign Hachimura even if they are over the salary cap and offer 8% of the annual salary, instead of the 5% that other teams are limited to. The Lakers could also offer him a five-year deal if he becomes a free agent, while other teams can only offer him a maximum of four years.

There seems to be no rush to renew Hachimura's contract, and the team needs to observe his performance this year.