At the start of the season, many wondered what role Rui Hachimura would play under JJ Redick and how much the young striker could develop.

After more than a quarter of the season has been completed, we are starting to get answers to this question.

Hachimura has played 21 games for the Lakers, starting each time. Its production hasn’t exploded into a new stratosphere, but small increases have led to a big impact.

On this roster, Hachimura has been the most consistent player not named LeBron James or Anthony Davis. He is averaging 12.2 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, the latter a career high, while shooting 44% from 3-point range.

It’s the small improvements in Hachimura that really stand out.

When it comes to rebounds, he fights for his position in the field and usually wins these battles. Rui can move to larger fours and fives and hold his own.

Hachimura also remained aggressive, attacking the paint and putting pressure on the rim. He has the third-most dunks on the team so far with 22, just one behind LeBron’s 23.

Given that Hachimura was “just” consistent and not an All-Star, fans put him in the trade machine and saw if it would produce a nice return.

The question is, can the Lakers actually use Hachimura as trade bait to bring a bigger fish to Southern California?

In the words of the great Darius Soriano: yes and no. On the one hand, Rui is a player who will certainly be desirable for many teams. At a base salary of $17 million, you can find a trade that sends Hachimura away and signs a good player.

While Hachimura isn’t necessarily an untradeable player given his importance to this team, it’s hard to imagine him being moved. Reports suggest so The Lakers view him as a long-term player, and that doesn’t sound like the type of player they’d be looking at for a midseason trade.

Vice President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka is ultimately responsible for these player trade decisions. However, if Redick’s word is worth anything, he seems to have a high level of trust in Hachimura.

Before the team’s final game against the Wolves, Redick spoke about Hachimura (h/t Dan Woike/LA Times).

“He responded to every challenge we gave him. He’s been our most consistent player, just in terms of what we’ve asked him to do and then executing it. It was a pleasure to coach him.

“It was a joy to be with him every day. And we really missed him when he was out. It’s interesting, defensively, even if you watch the video, even when it comes to the ball, most of the time he does the right thing. To me, he’s just more consistent in terms of what we ask of a man, in terms of his role, his responsibilities, our system, our plans. Do it without complaint, like it’s great to train him.”

Hearing Rui praised for his offensive play is normal, but Redick giving him flowers for his defensive skills is far less normal. It might sound ridiculous to think of Hachimura as a good defender, considering he still gets beaten more often than you’d like at wide range.

However, he has made progress and is more often than not capable of being successful defensively on the field. Rui always puts in reasonable effort and wants to get better at defense.

Given LA’s major defensive problems, this is a welcome improvement. After the Lakers’ practice on Wednesday, Hachimura discussed hugging his center back.

“With team defense and this concept, I think I can be more active and try not to guess but to be in the right position and use my length,” Hachimura said. “I think that’s the one thing I’ve been working on with the coaches and I think it’s getting better.”

The progress in Rui’s defense is great, but the offense is lacking his bread will always be buttered. Although his rating remained unchanged, he has shown signs of improvement. His effective field goal percentage has increased monthly and is currently at 65% in December. That’s better than any month he had last season March, when it was at 67%.

If Hachimura continues to soak up the knowledge Redick pours into him like a sponge, he will likely surpass those numbers later in the season.

The reason Hachimura’s efficiency has increased is directly because he takes better shots in Redick’s system. Although he is a good mid-range shooter, he has taken fewer of those shots and is either finishing strong near the rim or shooting a 3-pointer.

His percentage of shots near the rim has decreased as he converts 69% of his attempts compared to 78% last year. However, with his 3-pointers only decimal places below his career best, Rui has improved his efficiency month over month.

If he continues to follow Redick’s game plan, he will mathematically have to be one of the most efficient scorers on the roster.

Rui is a player who has a positive impact on wins and was a big reason the Lakers went to the 2023 Western Conference Finals. Can he help take things to the next level and bring an 18th championship to Los Angeles?

That remains to be seen, but Redick and Hachimura are working on it every day. Although the road is long, their efforts have already borne fruit.

This season he has improved as a defender, is a better rebounder, shoots well from deep, has transitioned from role player to starter and has excelled in that role. Redick can trust Hachimura to reach the base level he wants, and on a team that lacks consistency, that’s a valuable asset.

Hopefully there are bigger statistical gains ahead for Rui, but for now he’s doing everything the Lakers ask of him. He’s a star in his role and considering he’s in his sixth year, he’s far from a finished product.

If the Lakers play their cards right, they can capitalize on his prime and win big.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.