Lakers: Why Darvin Ham Might Be the Right Head Coach For LA
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The Lakers will be hiring their sixth head coach in the last ten years this summer. During that stretch, they've hired a flashy name, Mike D'Antoni, a Showtime era player, Bryon Scott, a once promising up-and-comer, Luke Walton, and a coach who was castoff by the Orlando Magic, Frank Vogel. Not to mention, firing Mike Brown five games into the season is what started that whole chronology.
It's time for Jeanie Buss, Rob Pelinka, the Rambi, and apparently Phil Jackson, to do something they haven't done in a while. Make a pragmatic decision.
Hiring former Golden State Warriors head coach Mark Jackson will help the Lakers win the press conference, but will it actually help them win games?
Stealing Nick Nurse from Toronto is not happening. From what it sounds like, Utah's Quin Snyder wasn't exactly a big fan of Pelinka and company firing Vogel over Twitter moments after the last game of the season.
If Snyder isn't an option, Milwaukee Bucks assistant coach Darvin Ham is the right man for the job. He's a respected assistant who's worked for one of the most demanding coaches in the league in Mike Budenholzer for almost a decade. He was part of a coaching staff that helped a Bucks team climb out of a 2-1 series deficit and win the 2021 Finals.
Back during the Lakers 2019 head coaching search, the team had the blessing of LeBron James and Klutch Sports to hire Ham. One would assume Ham is still on the "approved list" for LeBron.
It's a players league whether fans like it or not. Franchises have to ensure they have some level of support from their superstar when it comes to selecting a new head coach.
The Lakers need to get realistic. Everyone in the league is well aware of their institutional short comings. Some big name coach who's going to turn the franchise around isn't going to magically walk through the door for an interview.
Ham could be the right man for the job.
