Lakers fire head coach Darvin Ham after two seasons

Lakers fire head coach Darvin Ham after two seasons

The Los Angeles Lakers have fired head coach Darvin Ham after two seasons, ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski was first to report Friday.

BREAKING: The Los Angeles Lakers dismissed coach Darvin Ham, sources tell ESPN. In two seasons, Ham was 90-74 with a Western Conference Finals berth, two Play-In victories and an In-Season title. Lakers lost in five games to Denver in opening-round. pic.twitter.com/33ck0Hgyu4

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 3, 2024

Ham went 90-74 in his two seasons, finishing as the No. 7 and 8 seed in the West in the regular season, respectively. Los Angeles advanced to the Western Conference Finals in his first season, ultimately getting swept by the eventual champion Denver Nuggets. It squared off with Denver yet again this year in the first round–after having to win a play-in game to earn the No. 7 seed–a series that ended in the Nuggets winning in five competitive contests.

This firing comes not long after Wojnarowski reported last week that he would be on the hot seat if the Lakers lost Game 5 to Denver on Monday; they lost by two as a result of Jamal Murray‘s second game-winning jumper of the series.

Ham, 50, was previously an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks under Mike Budenholzer, working closely with Giannis Antetokounmpo and being instrumental in his development. He was also a part of the Atlanta Hawks’ coaching staff and was a Lakers assistant for two seasons under Mike Brown.

Ham was widely criticized for his rotations, which isn’t surprising; the rotations or adjustments (that he also wasn’t adept at) are the easiest thing to pin on a head coach. But, more importantly, Ham failed to rely on the team’s best players–Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt (when he was healthy)–at different points of the season.

Anthony Davis also recently publicly called out Ham and the team’s lack of execution, in which Ham rebuffed, “I’ll agree to disagree on that one.” That suggests more than just constructive criticism–rather suggesting there was a growing discontent between player and coach. It’s one thing if that player’s a role player–but Davis is your second-best player (or arguably your best). That can’t happen.

Report: There’s a ‘growing disconnect’ between Darvin Ham, Lakers amid rotation changes

Do you think Ham should’ve been canned? Who do you see as a viable replacement? Let us know in the comments!

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This is a breaking news story. Stay tuned for updates.

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