The Los Angeles Lakers have had amazing success since deciding on a starting lineup, even if it probably took them much too long. Rui Hachimura, in particular, has performed exceptionally well as a starter and has transformed into a player who fans recognized from the playoffs the previous year.

In the victory over the Washington Wizards, Hachimura finished with nine points and seven rebounds after making nine of his twelve field goals. He has averaged 16.9 points on 62.4% shooting and 45.7% from 3-point range in the Lakers’ last ten games.

The Lakers mostly relied on this lineup during their playoff run the previous season, and Hachimura believes that the five players in that lineup are just very at ease with one another, according to Spectrum SportsNet:

“We just feel at ease playing together. You guys can see that we have good chemistry both offensively and defensively. We eventually gained it back, having already held it during the playoffs. We didn’t have the time in the beginning of the season because of all the roster changes and injuries, but we managed to come back together on schedule. All we need to do is keep improving and get ready for the postseason.

With the Lakers, lineups and rotations are now largely established, which permits the chemistry to develop. Around LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Hachimura, Austin Reaves, and D’Angelo Russell have shown to be incredibly productive, and the forward has really flourished in this combination.

And Hachimura acknowledges that he has benefited much from playing between LeBron and Davis, pointing out that his work is made easy by the attention they receive.

“I get a lot of wide-open looks when I play with LeBron and AD because they get a lot of attention.” It’s a practice shot, so it’s simple. I’m always talking to Phil (Handy), my practice partner, about how I need to be the one making those threes because I have to be open in this lineup. That makes it easy for me because they are unable to leave LeBron, DLo, AD, or AR.

Everything revolves around LeBron and Davis, and when they are clicking and keeping the defense off balance, it creates opportunities for everyone else. If Hachimura can regularly block those shots, the Lakers become nearly unstoppable and defeating them becomes a far more challenging endeavor.