Darvin Ham... The weak link?

[Danny Darko]

pretty clear he's lost the locker room, has a crap offense, and can't let the rotations that worked last year run together for no good reason. I also think he's awful with timeout usage/timing.

I would move on before the season is fully over. I like several candidates and wouldn't mind putting Rajon as an assistant.

[DanishLakerFan]

He has to go at this point. Doesn't put his players in position to succeed.

Let him go, ASAP and then re-tool with some extra offense on the 15th when guys becomes trade eligible.

[stan francisco]

Ham is sick and tired of knee jerk media reactions, says it’s a marathon, that we should relax.

Well, last year we got out marathoned by coach Malone. I haven’t seen any changes in his defense, the same inability to adjust prevails. It’s a marathon to watch us fail the same way this season, or worse. Fix your perimeter defense, Ham!

[zuju]

Ham is sick and tired of knee jerk media reactions, says it’s a marathon, that we should relax.

Well, last year we got out marathoned by coach Malone. I haven’t seen any changes in his defense, the same inability to adjust prevails. It’s a marathon to watch us fail the same way this season, or worse. Fix your perimeter defense, Ham!

His problems have been observed for quite a long time already. Another problem is he does not know his own problem.

He has lost the locker room. Lakers better search for a replacement. Definitely not a knee jerk reaction.

[Kilroy]

We're a **** abysmal road team and a decent home team... When that happens with non-NBA teams, it's generally a coaching thing... One could argue NBA teams are different... But I mean, at some point you have to wonder...

Coupled with that, this is the time of the season our 2 stars like to take easy... Could a better coach help mitigate that? Seems logical, but who knows...

It's just weird to me with all the different personnel we've had around LeBron and AD over the last 5 years, that every season seems to go about the same... This team struggles into the deadline, make a decent change and the new guys carry the team into the post season, when AD and LeBron wake up again... It's not a Championship formula, but it's good enough to fool people into giving a **** again...

[LAKESHOW]

100%
Change is required

[zuju]

If you they decided to keep Ham after the win against the clippers, that's a knee jerk reaction

[tamaraw08]

This team is struggling because it has a a lot of needs?
1. Badly need shooters?
Both Prince and D'Lo are shooting 39.4% from 3, Lebron is shooting 39%.
2. Need a 2ndary ball handler and a good passer.
D-Lo fits that need, averaging 6 assists, with a career low 1.9 turnovers.
3. They need a Point of Attack lock down defender.
They have Vando and Reddish.
4. They need a dominant defensive minded Center who blocks shots and rebounds.
They have Davis.
5. They need another big who shoots good from the 3pt area.
Wood is 6-10, shot 50% from 3 in December, 37.5% in January.
So what is the problem? hmmmmmm.

[Showtime:Part2]

That’s not the way this works. You obviously don’t replace prime lebron with Phil Jackson and expect team to be neutral. Terrible argument. You’re comparing coaches to other coaches and what impact they have. The top of the nba isn’t that different in talent. What separates team success is having coaches like doc rivers (if you bring up the 08 ring rmr that was the year he had thibs as assistant doing all his defensive schemes and bos was a goat defensive team that year) or mark Jackson or Darvin ham vs coaches like spo, Kerr (I mean legit same early playoff exit team diff coach year after mark Jackson leaves becomes dynasty???), brad Stevens, etc… hell if we had Vogel I think we make the finals. Someone who didn’t think it would be a good idea to go under every screen and play drop and leave Murray, mpj, and Kcp WIDE open bc they were scared of a joker layup. Someone who didn’t play dlo when the other teams coach and players came out after game 1 and said they were hunting dlo. Each game decided by 10 points or less basically. A better coach gets you over the hump. You are blind if you think we replace Phil w dantoni and win as many rings as we did. Sht is decided on the margins in the playoffs. Being lackadaisical about it, especially when there are no salary cap constraints for coaching, is really stupid

Ham might legit be a bottom 5 coach in the nba. He stubbornly played Malik beaseley starter minutes for a good majority of the season since the trade. He refused to play backup centers (I know bamba sucks but you gotta give guys run to gel w the team and see what you’ve got and if you can give beaseley 30 mins to brick 3s and play no d you can sure as sht give Mo 10 mins instead of dnps to see if he belongs on this team), and just look how badly we got outscored without AD in the game consistently. He was rolling Gabriel out at the 5 when it yielded the other team a bucket every possession. He benched hachimura after the guy played well in the reg season. In the playoffs, per nba stats, rui held joker to 40% fg shooting when matchup up w joker and yet we only played them for 6 mpg (total 25 minutes) against each other for the series. Do you rmr at the end of game 1, we all thought we had something when rui shut down jokic and ad came out roaming and we came back? Then game two inexplicably we went completely away from it and went back to AD on joker. If Austin Reaves doesn’t explode in the second half and bail out this team (and just addition by subtraction of Westbrook gone), you’d be calling for his head too but you don’t have the ability to see the minutiae of what coaching impacts (as you yourself said you clearly think it doesn’t make a difference). Having a Anthony Davis, lbj, and the leagues leading guard in efficienncy can mask a lot of problems with our decision making but come playoffs those problems show against the elite teams. Maybe your aspiration is just to lose to den in the ecf every year idk. Bottom line: schemes and rotations matter in the post season

That’s exactly the way this works. Coaches aren’t going to do **** if they don’t have the right players around them. My entire argument is that the front office and players make a far greater impact on success than coaches do. And it’s without question. If you give Phil Jackson or Spo or Pop the Charlotte Hornets or the Houston Rockets they will still be terrible. If you give the Bulls or Earriors Darvin Ham, they still win the title. That’s how this works.

The Lakers failures the last couple years had far more to do with injuries and poor front office decisions than Ham or Vogel or anyone else.

The Nuggets this year were a better team, period. They had more guys that could hit shots than we did. Much of the way Ham played was similar to the way Spo played them the next round. Again at the end of the day most nba level coaches are going to come to similar conclusions on plans schemes given the personnel involved.

So no you are dead wrong about much of what you are talking about, half of which I didn’t read because it’s the same circle of nonsense that keeps getting spewed over and over. And it’s based on Ham did this or Ham didn’t do that. It’s the same recycled complaints Lakers fans had about Ham they said about Vogel, D’Antoni, Brown…but mysteriously those coaches go elsewhere and win coach of the year. It’s all nonsense.

Ham is a fine coach. He may not do it exactly as you would but I’m sure he thinks about these things at a much greater depth than you do while your jerking the slurpy machine at 7/11 or AM/PM for $12 an hour. As all NBA level coaches do,

Why bother posting on an internet board about basketball if you’re gonna admit you won’t even read the other persons post? Why don’t you just go talk to a wall instead? Is it because you can’t answer basic questions like how can coaching not matter when you look at the delta of the warriors from mark Jackson to Steve Kerr (lmao Darvin ham is not winning sht w the warriors outside of MAYBE the kd years, poof there goes ur dynasty)? Is it because you can’t comprehend that championships are won on the margins? What is the weird personal attack about a slurpy machine at 7/11 (I don’t even understand the insult, are you trying to call me poor lol??). One thing I’m gleaning from your posts is that you consistently come in with some preconceived opinion and if anyone disagrees you go ****, regardless of what facts are presented to you. I personally think the wall is a better outlet for your rants than this forum, but do you. Easy to add to my ignore list. Maybe one day you will gain the logical capability to determine rob pelinka isn’t choosing between Giannis and Darvin ham. He’s choosing between nick nurse and Darvin ham, and that decision does have consequences vis a vis championships

I just came here to say that I was completely right and hoosierdaddy (sorry Darvin hams burner acct) was completely wrong. And no I’m not gonna be respectful about it bc 1) neither were you 2) it’s fans like you that hurt the franchise. The fans and media should have been calling for his head after the nuggets disaster class instead we have to sit thru more bs and hit an absolute low point before the less intelligent among us wake up and realize he’s not even a g league caliber coach

[Showtime:Part2]

Just absurd had to listen to a bunch of Dennis Schroeder slander all offseason as tho he was the reason we lost to the nuggets, not pockets the clown. A team led by morons for a fan base full of morons. Good lord do I miss the dr buss and Phil days

[stan francisco]

Just absurd had to listen to a bunch of Dennis Schroeder slander all offseason as tho he was the reason we lost to the nuggets, not pockets the clown. A team led by morons for a fan base full of morons. Good lord do I miss the dr buss and Phil days

At the time, I was really hoping for Willie Green.

[Showtime:Part2]

Just absurd had to listen to a bunch of Dennis Schroeder slander all offseason as tho he was the reason we lost to the nuggets, not pockets the clown. A team led by morons for a fan base full of morons. Good lord do I miss the dr buss and Phil days

At the time, I was really hoping for Willie Green.

It was legitimately comical watching gb and lakers board slobber over Gabe Vincent. Ppl really fell for a 12 game sample size instead of a full season of 3 pt shooting stats. I guess what’s more comical is that our fo fell for it. He’s not even statistically some amazing defender. The only thing about Vincent that has caught my by surprise is that he doesn’t play at all. I didn’t think we were getting damaged goods. I thought he was a meh player but not a guy who would be chilling all year. Now we have a huge hole where Dennis was. I would honestly call the raptors bc it seems Dennis is annoyed they got iq. Maybe some seconds will get him back. The dude flat out won us games last year with his heroics. But again, none of it matters w scam running the team. It’s all moot. You could give us Steph curry for dlo and we wouldn’t make the finals

[stan francisco]

Just absurd had to listen to a bunch of Dennis Schroeder slander all offseason as tho he was the reason we lost to the nuggets, not pockets the clown. A team led by morons for a fan base full of morons. Good lord do I miss the dr buss and Phil days

At the time, I was really hoping for Willie Green.

It was legitimately comical watching gb and lakers board slobber over Gabe Vincent. Ppl really fell for a 12 game sample size instead of a full season of 3 pt shooting stats. I guess what’s more comical is that our fo fell for it. He’s not even statistically some amazing defender. The only thing about Vincent that has caught my by surprise is that he doesn’t play at all. I didn’t think we were getting damaged goods. I thought he was a meh player but not a guy who would be chilling all year. Now we have a huge hole where Dennis was. I would honestly call the raptors bc it seems Dennis is annoyed they got iq. Maybe some seconds will get him back. The dude flat out won us games last year with his heroics. But again, none of it matters w scam running the team. It’s all moot. You could give us Steph curry for dlo and we wouldn’t make the finals

Yeah. I’m all for PJ style Kum-ba-ya vibes as long as it comes with serious X’s and O’s. I’m also all for Dr Buss style patience as long as it’s wisely invested.

Ham revealed his total cluelessness to tactics and strategy and actual on-court coaching, last playoffs. The Denver series, for one, was embarrassingly revealing.

Rob seems to be doing well when Klutch and ownership are not interfering with his decisions but rather work in support of them.

Gabe Vincent can go in a trade package for Schroeder or Caruso as far as I’m concerned. We need tough two-way players, no glass men. The NYK trade (where TOR got robbed on defense) perhaps made a Schroeder trade more likely than before depending on how dumb TOR are.

I’d prefer Caruso albeit a tougher trade.

[LAKESHOW]

Alot of things wrong. But this dude cannot coach. Straight up

[stan francisco]

We’re looking really good tonight on both ends. Quality win, if we don’t blow it. Even D Lo plays both ends. Vandy is coming back into shape. Rui is back. OKC is a tough team.

[SK21209]

I'm not as down on Ham as most. The rotations were really weird for a while, but that's settled down over the last couple of weeks. I understand why we didn't just run back the DLo/Reaves/LeBron/Vando/AD starting lineup. It was a +20 net rating regular season lineup last season, but fell to a +0.4 net rating in the playoffs. I've seen a lot of people call it "the lineup that got us to the WCF", which is just incorrect. It got us a home game in the play-in tournament, which was really important, but we won the Grizzlies and Warriors series specifically because we pivoted to Rui at the 4 and Dennis taking on the point-of-attack duties.

Because of all that, I understand not just reverting to that starting lineup this season. Our biggest problem last season, and again this season, is the halfcourt offense. It's why we lost to the Nuggets, Zach Lowe has been on this all season. You just can't win big in the 2024 NBA with an offensive rating ranked in the 2020s. I think the coaching staff recognized this, and that's why they didn't want to start Vando again and why they wanted to convert to a 5-out offense (which, statistically, has also been the right call). But all the injuries to rotation guys undermined their plans and Ham got a little too far into his head with the experimenting.

[stan francisco]

It’s always nice to kick the Mavs’ arse, even when half injured. Good win. Good energy on both ends. Vanderbilt played some great defense. D Lo played some great offense.

Ham seems to have realized that with Vandy’s offense, you need D Lo on the court to cover for it; and with D Lo’s defense, you need Vandy and AD on the court to cover for it. Brilliant.

In a playoffs series, however, D Lo’s defense will be exploited once again until he’s benched (see WCF) Then what?

Vandy with a 3PT shot would be a scary thought but a pipe dream. D Lo playing defense as well as he plays offense is also a pipe dream. Neither is going to happen before April.

I hope Ham and Rob both do their part to improve it all before the post season. And that we soon get to have a healthy roster for a while.

[Showtime:Part2]

It is legitimately unbelievable it took this fcking clown this long to play ad lbj ar dlo and vando together. I cannot believe we were playing reddish more than rui. Literally can’t fathom what stupidity would lead to that. I wish pelinka would just waive reddish so ham can’t go nuts with his minutes when he’s back. Cam reddish is a disaster and doesn’t belong in the league. Great, you are an above average defender in an offense first league and you are about as good as Ben Wallace on offense but with way more turnovers.

[LAKESHOW]

This is the Key Point. WE ARE NOW DEPENDENT UPON DLO....FOR SUCCESS.

[tamaraw08]

This is the Key Point. WE ARE NOW DEPENDENT UPON DLO....FOR SUCCESS.

I'm hoping and praying D'Lo drops 40 vs the Nets tonight. Rob then reminds NETS GM Sean Marks that our Sharp Shooting Court General had his BEST SEASON there in Brooklyn, averaging 21 pts/7 rebs and he was so great he was an ALLSTAR that season in 2018.
Marks then trades Mikal Bridges,Claxton, DFS or Royce for D'Lo, Cam Reddish and Hayes.