Darvin Ham’s time with the Los Angeles Lakers is over.
The Lakers fired their head coach on Friday, the team announced. The move came days after the Lakers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets. Ham spent just two seasons with James and the Lakers.
Ham replaced Frank Vogel after the 2021-22 season and found success almost immediately. The Lakers reached the Western Conference Finals last season, although the Nuggets swept them in that round before winning their first NBA title.
The Lakers are off to a great start this season. They went a perfect 7-0 and won the season-opening tournament in Las Vegas in December. James was also named tournament MVP, after averaging 26.4 points and shooting nearly 57% from the field in those seven games. That led to a banner going up at Crypto.com Arena.
But after the Lakers title, things went downhill quickly. The Lakers lost 12 of their next 17 games and quickly fell in the Western Conference standings.
The Lakers finished the season with a record of 47-35 and reached the play-in tournament after winning 11 of their final 14 regular season games. The Lakers then beat the New Orleans Pelicans to earn a playoff berth, marking their fourth trip to the postseason in the last five seasons. The Nuggets, however, beat them 4-1 in the first series.
“It’s been an incredible two years sitting in this seat, I tell you that,” Ham said after their loss to the Nuggets on Monday. via Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “It’s been an incredible two years.”
James, as he did earlier in the year after his stumble in the post-season tournament, didn’t seem very happy after Monday night’s season-ending loss.
LeBron, when asked if he had thought that tonight would be the last game he would play as a Laker:
“Uhhh, I’m not going to answer that. I appreciate it.”
– Vincent Goodwill (@VinceGoodwill) April 30, 2024
James, 39, averaged 25.7 points, 8.3 assists and 7.3 rebounds per game this season. He played in 71 games, which marked his highest performance since the 2017-18 campaign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
So after their early playoff exit, the Lakers decided it was time to move on. They have now parted ways with Ham after just two seasons at the helm. He finished with an overall record of 90-74 leading the Lakers, which marked his first head coaching job in the league. He was just 1-8 against the Nuggets in the playoffs.
Provided the Lakers find a replacement for Ham, they will be James’ fourth head coach during his seven seasons with the organization, assuming he returns next fall. Vogel lasted the longest working with James, although he was fired after his third season.
