Los Angeles Lakers NBA coach Darvin Ham (left) and franchise star LeBron James (right)
NBA (DR)

Even if the Lakers are doing a little better in recent weeks, Darvin Ham is far from unanimously praised for his coaching in the City of Angels. LeBron James would be very annoyed for his part.

If we were to start making a ranking of LeBron James ‘ best coaches in his career, there is no doubt that Darvin Ham would appear somewhere in the last positions. The person concerned is far from being unanimously praised in Los Angeles for his work, with particularly questionable rotations and patterns during matches. And the King would share the opinion of the supporters.

Deep disagreement with the Lakers?

Although Rob Pelinka refuses to fire him, not right away anyway, there is talk behind the scenes that the Chosen One would be quite annoyed by Ham’s coaching. According to Anthony Irwin, he even goes so far as not to listen to the coach’s talks, or modify the systems according to his preferences once on the floor. The divide would be real.

Anthony Irwin : “LeBron sits down during a timeout to rest and drink, then he often rolls his eyes while Ham speaks, and waits for the end. If Ham draws a system, as soon as the grouping is complete, James will warn everyone not to pay attention to it and that he will call a system himself. »

This may seem a bit strong, but it’s not like we don’t have several examples throughout the season. At the end of December 2023, LeBron was very doubtful about the system drawn up by Ham at the end of the match ( see the sequence ).

Irwin goes a little further, since he explains that several players have planned to speak to Rob Pelinka at the end of the season. A change of coach is a strong possibility depending on future results.

Irwin : “All year long, there have been rumors about the opinions of several players regarding Ham, and some have planned to speak to Rob Pelinka regarding Ham’s future at the end of the season. There is a certain anxiety in the organization. »

Is this the end for Darvin Ham? Several players are in any case worried with the coach at the head of the Lakers, aware that he may not be the man for the job. Summer 2024 will likely be a turning point.