The Los Angeles Lakers have hired Milwaukee Bucks assistant coach Darvin Ham as head coach, according to Adrian Wojnarowski. The Lakers interviewed several candidates, but as the search drew to a close, they focused on three finalists: Ham, former Portland Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts, and former Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson. In the end, Ham was able to win their most experienced competition and will receive a four-year contract to coach the franchise, according to Shams Charania.
Ham, a small striker in his playing days, got a career in the NBA that lasted almost a decade. He won the 2004 Pistons Championship and participated in the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest, but has since made a name for himself as an assistant coach. After a few years in the G League, Ham’s first NBA coaching job came with the Lakers. He worked with Phil Jackson between 2011 and 2013, narrowly missing out on the last two Kobe Bryant championships.
His rise to prominence did not reach Los Angeles, however. He left the Lakers in 2013 to join Mike Budenholzer’s team in Atlanta, and has since worked with Budenholzer. Ham has been Budenholzer’s top assistant for the past few years and the pair won a championship together in 2021. So far, Budenholzer’s tree coaches have been quite successful in their own jobs. Which Snyder, the rumored Lakers nominee, Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins, and, ironically, Atkinson have worked with Budenholzer. The Lakers probably valued that experience, as they also interviewed another Budenholzer assistant: Charles Lee. Now Ham will be the head coach for the first time in his career, and he has the job done for him given the year the Lakers just had.
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Despite entering the season as the Western Conference favorites, the Lakers lost the playoffs 33-49. His replacement for Russell Westbrook was a disastrous one, and Frank Vogel was dismissed as coach in a matter of seconds after the final knockout of the season. The squad needs a review, LeBron James and Anthony Davis have faced injuries for two years, and in a busy Western Conference, making the playoffs will be harder than ever.
The Lakers believe Ham is up to the task. His first job as head coach will be one of the toughest in all of basketball, but remember that the last time a team that hired James hired a coach for the first time, he won a championship. That coach, Ty Lue, is training in the same field as Ham. Now the Lakers are hoping for the same result.