Darvin Ham’s tenure as head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers has only been a little over a year to this point although it has certainly been an eventful year.
His first head coaching gig didn’t get off to the best start as the Lakers began the 2022-23 season 2-10. They were able to turn things around after making moves at the trade deadline though and Ham wound up leading them all the way to the Western Conference Finals.
The Lakers came into this season with high expectations and after another slow start, they are beginning to find their way. L.A. currently sits at 9-7 after winning six of their last eight games with key guys starting to get healthy.
It’s been a crazy journey for Ham so far with the Lakers and with Thanksgiving taking place on Thursday, he was asked what he’s thankful for and listed his family and faith while also giving a shoutout to Lakers owner Jeanie Buss for giving him this job.
“I’m thankful for God blessing me with a beautiful family, wife and children, beautiful parents that raised me to not be too high, not be to low and to always put God first and just be thankful for the opportunities I get, no matter how small or large. I just appreciate the human beings that pitched in to make who I am today, and I’m still a work in progress as we all are. Just trying to get better, have the right spirit, have a positive outlook. And I’m thankful to Jeanie Buss for giving me an opportunity.”
Ham has always been one to appreciate everything he has accomplished in this league and all of the opportunities he has been afforded, so his Thanksgiving answer doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
Over the summer, Buss commended Ham for how he has handled the job so far, giving him a vote of confidence going into the 2023-24 season. While the Lakers still have a long way to go to win their 18th championship, it’s clear that the organization supports Ham and he will do everything in his power to make it happen.
Ham explains why he didn’t call timeout against Mavericks
The Lakers are going into Thanksgiving with a sour taste in their mouths after losing to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night.
Despite trailing by 20 points in the fourth quarter, the Lakers fought all the way back and took the lead in the final minute before Kyrie Irving drilled a game-winning 3-pointer.
After Irving’s shot, the Lakers had a chance down by one although LeBron James turned it over on a lob attempt to Anthony Davis.
Ham opted not to call a timeout to set up a play in that situation and explained that the reason was he didn’t want Dallas to sub it’s defense-first players in and he doesn’t regret the decision despite the loss.
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