Getty Head coach Darvin Ham of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Embattled Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham shrugged off all the rumors and implored his struggling team to tune up all the outside noises.
“If they’re not the Lakers, then don’t pay attention to it,” Ham said of his message to the team.
The Lakers just dropped their fourth straight 127-113 to the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, January 5, to slip out of the play-in picture in the West with a 17-19 record. They are now 3-10 since winning the In-Season Tournament title.
“It is what it is,” Ham said. “It’s the NBA man! This is a marathon and you have to look at the totality of the picture. I’m tired of people living and dying with every single game we play like it’s ludicrous actually. It’s like, come on man! This is a marathon and we hit a tough stretch. It’s the same team that played some high-level games a little while ago and we just got to get back to that. We got to keep the fight though. We cannot lose our fight.”
Against Memphis, Los Angeles only fought three-fourths of the game. Tied for the last time at 103-all with 7:41 left, the Lakers let go of the rope as the Grizzlies embarked on an 11-2 run within the next three minutes to put the game away.
Darvin Ham Addresses Rumors About His Job
Ham denied reports that his job is in jeopardy.
“I’m solid,” Ham said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN on January 5. “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 added his communication with the Lakers’ top stars James and Anthony Davis has been at a “high level.”
The 50-year-old Ham is in his second season of a four-year deal he signed with the Lakers in the 2022 offseason. He coached the Lakers to the Western Conference Finals in his first year overcoming an early-season struggle.
Lakers ‘Just Suck Right Now’
LeBron James led the Lakers with 32 points, seven assists, five steals and five rebounds.
After the game, he bluntly said: “We just suck right now.”
James is also tired of the In-Season Tournament title run talks as they have never played close to that level in their next 13 games.
“That was just two games, though,” James said of their solid play to win that mid-season side event. “That was a small sample. Everybody is getting so cracked up about Vegas, keep bringing up Vegas. It was two games. We took care of that business … but that was really just two games.”
Lakers Don’t Have Enough to Trade for Dejounte Murray
If Lakers fans are looking for external help such as getting Atlanta Hawks two-way star Dejounte Murray, they are in for a disappointment.
According to TNT/Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes, the Lakers do not have enough trade assets.
“Sources relate to me that teams that have reached out to check on the availability of Dejounte Murray. Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers are a few of the teams out of many,” Haynes reported on January 5. “Any type of deal centered around Dejounte Murray, you would think Austin Reaves will be a part of that and Rui Hachimura will probably be in it. And for Atlanta, that just wouldn’t be enough. So Lakers, they have answers but the problem is they need more pieces that are going to be attractive for the Atlanta Hawks.”
The Lakers are limited in draft capital with only their 2029 or 2030 first-round pick available for an in-season trade. They could only expand their draft capital after the next NBA Draft. But the Hawks are intent on moving Murray, a Klutch Sports client like James and Anthony Davis, before the February 8 trade deadline.