Heading into the 2022-23 season, there wasn’t a ton of expectations for the Los Angeles Lakers after missing the playoffs the season prior. That’s something that isn’t usually associated with a franchise like the Lakers, where there should be the expectation of competing for a championship every year. However, coming into the season with a new head coach in Darvin Ham and lackluster roster, the issues were prevalent early on.
In what felt like deja vu for Laker fans, the team got off to a 2-10 start and were stuck at the bottom half of the Western Conference for more than half of the season until the trade deadline gave the team new life with acquired pieces that fit and made sense.
Lakers governor Jeanie Buss let Ham know that she had his back from the day they hired him as the franchises’ next coach. With the leashes of coaches seemingly being shorter than ever, having that instilled backing from management is crucial and Buss explained why it was a priority for her, via Mark Medina of Sportskeeda.com:
“I gained very valuable insight with being a companion of a head coach in the NBA for many years (Jackson). I know for a coach, it is kind of a lonely existence. You are the face of the franchise day in and day out. I know what it means when the coach receives support from ownership and from the front office.
“I let Darvin know that from day one that I am behind him 100% and I will continue to be behind him 100%. I reminded him of that during the season when he faced a lot of challenges.
“What I appreciated about Darvin so much was that, in discussions before the season, I said, ‘Things may get worse before they get better. We’ll do everything we can to get the roster the way we want it to be.’ Darvin said, ‘That’s for me to figure out. I’m the coach of this team, so that’s for me to figure out how to bring out the best in each of these players. That’s what a coach does.’ That was music to my ears.”
The Lakers were eventually able to find their way and made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals thanks in part to Ham’s leadership. Seeing it up close, Buss appreciated how Ham always stayed the course and stayed calm despite the poor start:
“He comes from a place of authenticity that he’s done the work. There is really no BS about the guy. He knows what it takes to win in the NBA. He’s done it as a player and as an assistant coach and now as a head coach. This was all part of his skillset that he brought to the Lakers when we hired him as head coach. I think he shined in a job that had a lot of challenges.
“He never faltered. What I appreciated so much about him was his calm demeanor, even when we were near the bottom of the standings when we started the season. We were awful with being 2-10. That’s a tough place to be, especially in Los Angeles, which has very high expectations for all of their teams and all of their sports. He never got too up. He never got too down. He always brought the same calm, energy day in and day out. That really set the tone with doing the work.”
It was hard to gauge the coaching ability of Ham with a roster that didn’t make a whole lot of sense. But when the new pieces came in February, the puzzle pieces came together. Now with an even better roster and more options, it’ll be intriguing to see what Ham does in the 2023-24 season.
Jeanie Buss: Lakers will eventually retire LeBron James’ jersey
Buss also gave confirmation that the organization will retire LeBron James’ jersey when he decides to hang it up and is inducted into the Hall of Game. Now the discussion becomes will the team retire No. 6, No. 23 or both?
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