Report: Lakers Will Fire Darvin Ham ‘By The End Of The Week’

According to NBA insider Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Los Angeles Lakers will fire Darvin Ham as head coach “by the end of the week.”

The Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 2024 playoffs. 

Lakers likely to move on from Darvin Ham by the end of the week; per @jovanbuha

"The latest I've heard is the plan is still to move on from Darvin [Ham] at some point, likely by the end of the week, potentially as early as tomorrow, then the head coaching search will start.… pic.twitter.com/wTWiJ8vdIl

— BASKETBALL ON 𝕏 (@BasketballOnX) May 2, 2024

The Lakers went 47-35 in the regular season. They were sixth in the NBA in points per game, 23rd in points per game allowed and 19th in net rating. 

Los Angeles defeated the New Orleans Pelicans in the 7-8 play-in game. The Nuggets eliminated the Lakers from the playoffs for the second consecutive year. 

“It’s been a hell of a two years sitting in this seat, I’ll tell you that,” Ham said after Monday’s Game 5 defeat. “It’s been a hell of a two years.”

A source told Hoops Wire that Lakers players “are done” with Ham. Los Angeles’ front office conducted exit interviews with players on Wednesday (5/1).

“Darvin is getting fired,” the source said. “Look, he’s a nice guy. Players like him as a person. He’s easy to talk to. He’s a former player and won a championship. Players respect him as a person. But that’s the issue. They respect him as a person, not as a coach. His schemes, rotations and inability to take accountability for his mistakes rubbed guys the wrong way all year. 

“They are done with Darvin. They wanted Phil (Handy) to replace Darvin earlier in the season. Darvin is done in LA and he knows it.”

LeBron James joined the Lakers in 2018. He has played for Luke Walton, Frank Vogel and Ham in Los Angeles. 

The Lakers won the 2020 championship under Vogel. However, he was fired following the 2021-22 season when the purple and gold missed the playoffs despite having LeBron, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard. 

LeBron can become an unrestricted free agent this summer if he declines his 2024-25 player option with the Lakers worth $51.4 million. Most people around the NBA expect LeBron to remain with Los Angeles.