According to NBA insider Sam Amick of The Athletic, Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss is still in head coach Darvin Ham’s corner.
NBA insiders Shams Charania and Jovan Buha of The Athletic reported earlier in the week that there’s a deepening disconnect between Ham and the Lakers locker room. After that report came out, Buss texted Ham.
“Unlike the (Frank) Vogel situation, where Buss was known to believe the former coach was largely to blame for the failed integration of Russell Westbrook and ultimately greenlighted his April 2022 firing as a result, all signs point to the Lakers’ most important decision-maker standing by the coach, who is in the second year of a four-year deal,” Amick wrote. “There’s a mutual respect in that relationship, one that resulted in Buss sending a lengthy text message of support to Ham in the wake of Thursday’s report in The Athletic that chronicled the rising pressure that surrounds him. Buss could certainly change her stance, of course, but the current state of affairs suggests Ham still has time to turn this around.”
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Darvin Ham, Jeanie Buss, Los Angeles Lakers Updates
The Lakers are only 18-19 this season. They are in 10th place in the Western Conference standings, and since winning the In-Season Tournament in Las Vegas, the Lakers are just 4-10.
Ham raised eyebrows in the Lakers organization when he started LeBron James, Cam Reddish, Taurean Prince, Jarred Vanderbilt and Anthony Davis on December 23 against the Oklahoma City Thunder. That starting lineup was really poor and Ham is now starting Austin Reaves, Prince, Reddish, LeBron and Davis.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Darvin Ham, Jeanie Buss, Los Angeles Lakers Updates
The Lakers are 20th in the league in points per game and 16th in points per game allowed under Ham, who went 43-39 last season. It sounds like Buss isn’t thinking about firing Ham right now, but that could change if the Lakers continue to struggle.
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