As the Los Angeles Lakers approach the NBA season’s midpoint with a record under .500, coach (17-19) Darvin Ham recently addressed rumors about his job security. He confidently stated that he continues to receive backing from the top brass of the franchise.
Ham declared before the Lakers’ 127-113 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies at home. He emphasized his alignment with Jeanie Buss, the team’s governor, and Robert Pelinka, the president, expressing confidence in their support despite not publicly voicing it.
“I’m solid,” Ham said. “My governor, Jeanie Buss, the boss lady; our president, Robert Pelinka — we’re all aligned. As long as they’re not saying it, I guess I’m good. Which I know how they feel about me and the situation we’re currently in.”
Ham acknowledged the challenges highlighted in a recent article by The Athletic, which mentioned a growing rift between him and the Lakers’ locker room. He accepted such scrutiny as part of the job but criticized the anonymous nature of the reporting.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Darvin Ham, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers Updates
Ham, who replaced Frank Vogel in May 2022 with a four-year contract, drew an analogy to secretive mafia reporting in the ’80s, expressing his wish for more direct and transparent journalism.
“It reminds me of when I used to watch ’60 Minutes’ with my father in the ’80s. And one particular show they were talking about La Cosa Nostra and the mafia, and these guys were starting to go to trial, and their star witness shows up with a black potato sack over his head and shades. And due to fear, the name can’t really be released,” Ham said. “And so this seems to be the standard of reporting now for NBA. People on the internet and whatever.
“And not all reporters — I don’t want to disrespect anybody in the room — but when you say the source is anonymous by choice and they don’t want to put their name on something, but they want to give you the information, and then you take the information, and now everybody gets a chance to dissect it and spread it all out in their own way, it’s kind of disingenuous,” Ham explained. “And I wish we would get to a place where people are firm enough to stand on what they’re saying, and then maybe we can have real dialogue and get to it.”
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Darvin Ham, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers Updates
Despite the team’s struggles, Ham stressed his ongoing, effective communication with team leaders LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Following their in-season tournament win, the Lakers have only managed 3 victories in 13 games, slipping to 11th in the Western Conference. Given the team’s high payroll and being led by James and Davis, expectations were significantly higher.
“I don’t mind people critiquing the job I’m doing,” Ham continued. “All I’m going to do is keep my head down and continue to do my job until I can’t do it anymore. And so, just, be solid with what you’re putting out there and please don’t intertwine it with personal attacks, either. So, that’s what it is, that’s what I signed up for when I decided to become a coach and I’ve been around some great guys who have handled it well and some coaches that haven’t handled it so well. But me? I’m solid, man. I’ve been through a ton of ‘ish’ in my life and this is a walk in the park. Trust me.”
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Darvin Ham, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers Updates
Ham remains unfazed by critiques, focusing on his role and avoiding personal attacks. He draws strength from his life experiences, viewing the current challenges as manageable.
“Injuries are a real part of professional sports,” Ham said. “And our performance team, they bust their behinds to make sure our players are available and able to play at a high level. But guys have physical issues that sometimes … Playing our game — I think we have the best athletes in all of sports all around the world — you’re going to subject your body to certain issues.”
The coach also reflected on internal improvements and acknowledged the impact of injuries on the team’s performance. Key players like D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, and Gabe Vincent have been sidelined, affecting the team’s dynamics.
“Injuries are a real part of professional sports,” Ham said. “And our performance team, they bust their behinds to make sure our players are available and able to play at a high level. But guys have physical issues that sometimes … Playing our game — I think we have the best athletes in all of sports all around the world — you’re going to subject your body to certain issues.”
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Darvin Ham, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers Updates
With a schedule featuring 11 of 12 games at home, Ham emphasizes maintaining a positive, problem-solving approach over succumbing to a losing mentality, focusing on learning and adapting rather than making excuses.
“You got to remain positive, man,” Ham said. “There’s a losing mentality and a winning mentality. When you have a loser’s mentality, you just go to belabor mistakes and what’s going on, what the problem is, and make excuses. When you have a winner’s mentality, you’re going to identity a problem, analyze it, realize it, and try to change it and capitalize in terms of not making the same mistake twice and adjust.”
