Getty Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis
The Los Angeles Lakers will hire a new coach this offseason after firing Frank Vogel and a former center for the franchise knows who owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka should hire to coach LeBron James and Anthony Davis next season.
Robert Sacre, who played four seasons for the Lakers from 2012-13 to 2015-16, believes Los Angeles should hire Darvin Ham.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Lakers have already requested permission to interview Ham, who is currently an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Who Is Ham?
Ham was born and raised in Saginaw, Michigan. He played his college basketball at Texas Tech and averaged 8.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in 90 games.
On October 1, 1996, Ham signed a free-agent deal with the Toronto Raptors after going undrafted in the 1996 NBA Draft. The 1996-97 season was a whirlwind for Ham. He played for the Raptors, Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers, averaging 2.3 points and 1.6 rebounds in 36 games.
Ham played for the Washington Wizards during the 1997-98 season. He put up 2.0 points and 1.8 rebounds in 71 games. The swingman played in Spain during the 1998-99 NBA campaign before returning to the states in 1999-00 to play for the Bucks. Ham appeared in 134 games with Milwaukee and averaged 4.4 points and 3.7 rebounds.
In 2002-03, Ham played for the Atlanta Hawks and averaged 2.4 points and 2.0 rebounds. He followed that up by playing two seasons with the Detroit Pistons in 2003-04 and 2004-05 before retiring from the NBA. Ham won the 2004 title with the Pistons over the Lakers and finished his NBA career with averages of 2.7 points and 2.3 rebounds.
Ham served as an assistant with the Lakers from 2011 to 2013. He was considered a top candidate to become the Washington Wizards’ head coach last July, but Washington ultimately decided to hire Wes Unseld Jr.
Lakers & Bucks Writer Explain Why Ham Is Right Man for LA Job
Bill Oram and Eric Nehm of The Athletic wrote why they believe Ham is the right man for the Lakers’ job on April 29. Oram covers the Lakers, who missed the playoffs this season, while Nehm covers Ham on the Bucks.
“The Lakers said they wanted a strong locker room presence in whoever replaces Frank Vogel, and while this is just the first name we’ve heard of getting an interview, Ham certainly checks that box,” Oram wrote. “As an assistant, he has long connected with superstars, including no less a figure than Kobe Bryant when Ham was a Lakers assistant a decade ago. That link could prove important, considering it is Bryant’s former agent making the hire and he knows the influence Bryant’s memory has on the franchise.”
Nehm added: “Ham has a previous connection with the Lakers organization, but his resume speaks for itself. Like the Raptors’ Nick Nurse, Ham got his start coaching in the G-League, first as an assistant for two seasons and then as general manager/coach of the Albuquerque Thunderbirds in 2010-11. After that, he joined Mike Brown’s staff in Los Angeles for two seasons before joining Mike Budenholzer’s staff in Atlanta. Ham has now been with Budenholzer for nine seasons and been Budenholzer’s lead assistant in Milwaukee as the team transformed into one of the NBA’s best teams.”
James and Davis are two of the best players in the NBA when healthy. The Lakers are 75-33 when the King and the Brow play since 2019. However, both superstars have been bitten by the injury bug over the last two years.
James and Davis only played in 22 games together this season due to injuries, a big reason why the Lakers went only 33-49 and missed the postseason.