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Now official: Lakers hire Darvin Ham as new head coach

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed Darvin Ham to a multi-year contract as head coach, it was announced today by Vice President, Basketball Operations and General Manager Rob Pelinka.

“When someone begins his NBA coaching career at the G League level and goes all the way through playing an integral role on the front bench of an NBA Championship team, it really speaks to a certain strength of character. Our players and fans will immediately identify with Darvin’s no-nonsense and hard-working approach, which we feel will bring toughness and a competitive edge to all we do,” said Pelinka. “When you add that to Darvin’s sophisticated grasp of in-game strategy and deep knowledge of the game of basketball, we have the ideal coach for this next chapter in Lakers history. We could not be more honored and proud to name Darvin Ham as our new head coach.”

Ham, 48, will be the 28th head coach in franchise history and the 24th of the Los Angeles era.

Ham enjoyed an eight-year NBA playing career (1996-98, 1999-2005), suiting up with Detroit, Atlanta, Milwaukee, Washington, Indiana and Denver. He was a member of the 2004 championship team with the Pistons.

Per the Orange County Register, “by now the broad strokes of Ham’s career are familiar to most Lakers fans: Ham was a journeyman player who won a championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004, followed by a long tenure as an assistant with the Lakers, Atlanta and Milwaukee. He’s coming from the Bucks, with whom he won a championship in 2021 under Mike Budenholzer. Ham’s previous experience with the Lakers – a two-year stint under Mike Brown – mattered in the hiring process. On Friday morning as they officially acknowledged the hire, the Lakers re-shared a 10-year-old Twitter post of Ham working out with Kobe Bryant.”

Per ESPN.com, “Ham will be tasked with turning around a Lakers team that went 33-49 this season and missed the playoffs, leading to Frank Vogel’s firing… The Lakers also interviewed Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson, Bucks assistant Charles Lee, Toronto Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin, former Portland Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts and former Warriors coach and current ESPN broadcaster Mark Jackson, sources told ESPN.”

After his successful playing career, Ham began coaching in 2008 as an assistant coach with the New Mexico Thunderbirds of the NBA Developmental League before taking over as general manager and head coach of the team in 2010. In 2011, Ham joined the Lakers as an assistant coach, spending two seasons with Los Angeles. He would then spend five seasons as an assistant with the Atlanta Hawks (2013-18) and joined the Milwaukee Bucks as an assistant coach in 2018, helping the Bucks to the 2021 NBA Championship.

A native of Saginaw, Michigan, Ham graduated from Texas Tech and played internationally in Spain, the Philippines and Puerto Rico.

Los Angeles Lakers 2022-23 preseason game schedule

The Los Angeles Lakers 2022-23 preseason schedule was announced today.

The Lakers will open preseason on Monday, October 3 in Los Angeles at Crypto.com Arena versus the Sacramento Kings. Los Angeles will then head to Las Vegas for back-to-back games against the Phoenix Suns and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Lakers will play their final three preseason games on a California swing against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center, at home versus the Minnesota Timberwolves, and on the road at Golden 1 Center versus the Sacramento Kings.

2022-23 LAKERS PRESEASON SCHEDULE
All Times Local

October 3: vs. Sacramento, in Los Angeles at Crypto.com Arena, 7:30 p.m.

October 5: vs. Phoenix, in Las Vegas at T-Mobile Arena, 7:00 p.m.

October 6: vs. Minnesota, in Las Vegas at T-Mobile Arena, 7:00 p.m.

October 9: at Golden State, in San Francisco at Chase Center, TBA

October 12: vs. Minnesota, in Los Angeles at Crypto.com Arena, 7:00 p.m.

October 14: at Sacramento, Sacramento at Golden 1 Center, 7:00 p.m.

Chauncey Billups praises Lakers’ choice of Darvin Ham as new coach

Here’s the Los Angeles Times, via the Detroit News website, with reaction to the news that the next Los Angeles Lakers head coach is going to be Darvin Ham:

The news of Ham’s hiring — which still hasn’t been announced by the Lakers — has been met with endorsements from those who crossed paths with Ham during his career: former coaches, teammates and colleagues lauding the Lakers for handing things over to a first-time coach.

“He’s going to be honest as a coach of the Lakers, which is what I think you need in the NBA today — somebody that’s going to be honest but know how to be honest without actually just tearing you down,” former teammate and Pistons great Chauncey Billups, now the coach in Portland said Saturday. “What can you say? He’s won as a player. He’s won as a coach. I mean, this dude is more than qualified for the task at hand. I’m so happy and proud of him. I spoke to him last night and he was so excited.”

Billups thinks the Lakers got it right.

“He’s ready for this job. He’s the right guy for this Lakers job,” Billups said.

The latest on the Lakers’ coaching search

The latest on the Los Angeles Lakers’ coaching search, via the L.A. Times:

After interviewing two assistant coaches for their head coaching position, the Lakers have spoken to a pair of former NBA head coaches, according to people with knowledge of the situation who were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

The Lakers interviewed former Portland Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts and former Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson in their search to replace Frank Vogel as head coach.

Assistants Darvin Ham (Milwaukee) and Adrian Griffin (Toronto) have also spoken with the Lakers about the job.

And from ESPN.com:

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka is the point man on the organization’s search, but there’s a committee in place to vet the candidates. Besides Pelinka and owner Jeanie Buss, advisor Kurt Rambis and former Lakers coach Phil Jackson are also a significant part of the conversations, sources said.

The Lakers have also reached out to Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham and Toronto Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin to discuss the opening, sources said.

After missing the playoffs with a 33-49 record, the Lakers fired Frank Vogel in April.

Judy Seto reportedly no longer with Lakers training staff

Judy Seto, a veteran member of the Lakers’ training staff, is no longer with the team — this as her contract expired — according to individuals familiar with the situation.

Since 2019, Seto has served as the team’s director of sports performance. She formerly worked as the Lakers’ head physical therapist from 2011 to 2016. Before that, she worked closely with Kobe Bryant, who praised her job as “indispensable.”

Bryant commended Seto with helping him stay in the league for so long.

Via the Los Angeles Times

Andre Ingram wins 2021-22 G League Sportsmanship Award

The NBA G League announced today that South Bay Lakers guard Andre Ingram has been selected as the winner of the 2021-22 NBA G League Sportsmanship Award, which honors the player who best represents the ideals of character and conduct as a teammate on the court and in the locker room.

Ingram becomes the second two-time winner of the award in NBA G League history, having previously received the honor for the 2009-10 season. Each NBA G League team nominated one player for the 2021-22 award, and Ingram was ultimately selected as the winner by his fellow NBA G League players.

The Kia NBA G League Sportsmanship Award trophy is named after the late Jason Collier, who exemplified the qualities of a great teammate during his career in the NBA G League and the NBA. A 2003-04 All-NBA G League First Team selection, Collier was preparing to begin his sixth NBA season at the time of his death in 2005.

Ingram, who just completed his 13th NBA G League season, is a fixture atop the NBA G League record books, ranking first all-time in games played (474) and minutes (11,699), third in points (4,533) and fourth in field goals made (1,515). He also holds the all-time NBA G League record for most three-pointers made (845), while sitting in fifth place all-time in three-point percentage (44.9). The Richmond, Virginia native appeared in six career NBA games for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.

Ingram’s energy off the bench as a player and mentor helped South Bay achieve one of their most productive seasons in franchise history. The team started strong with a 10-4 record in the Showcase Cup followed by a 21-11 record in the regular season, earning a three-seed in the Western Conference and advancing to the Western Conference Semifinals. Ingram’s leadership was pivotal in the development of the team’s young players as South Bay finished the season with eleven NBA call-ups, the second most in the G League.

Lakers sign Mac McClung to two-way contract

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed Mac McClung to a two-way contract, it was announced today.

McClung appeared in 27 regular season NBA G League games (all starts) for the South Bay Lakers and Windy City Bulls during the 2021-22 season, averaging 21.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.4 steals in 36.2 minutes. McClung shot 46.7 percent from the field and 37.4 percent from three-point range during his rookie campaign. He has appeared in one career NBA game for the Chicago Bulls, totaling two points in three minutes.

Lakers sign Wenyen Gabriel to standard NBA contract

The Los Angeles Lakers have signed Wenyen Gabriel to a standard NBA contract.

Gabriel originally signed a two-way contract with Los Angeles on March 1, 2022 and has appeared in 17 games (four starts) for the Lakers this season, averaging 5.7 points and 3.8 rebounds in 14.6 minutes. Gabriel has averaged 3.3 points and 2.5 rebounds in 75 career games (five starts) for the Lakers, Clippers, Nets, Pelicans, Trail Blazers and Kings.

Should the Lakers use Russell Westbrook as a reserve instead of as a starter?

As the NBA regular season starts to wrap up over the next month, the Lakers still face all sorts of challenges and questions to answer, including exactly how to make the most of Russell Westbrook’s talent. Here’s the OC Register:

There are only 19 games left in the season, and Westbrook is still disgruntled about his shifting role. After Thursday’s loss, Westbrook took a shot at the coaching staff again: “My role and what I’m doing has changed every single night, so I’m just trying to figure that out as I’m playing and to be able to benefit and help my team.”

Not long after, ESPN reported that Coach Frank Vogel was facing internal pressure to bring Westbrook off the bench, including a report of a tense Friday film session between Vogel and Westbrook. So far, according to ESPN, Vogel has resisted making the move. The report cites that the push is coming “among many in the Los Angeles Lakers organization,” which is deliciously vague.

Said Vogel on Friday: “We have discussions, just like the front office has thousands of trade discussions every deadline, and they don’t discuss every one of those. Most of them don’t come to fruition. And that’s where we’re at with Russ. Is there a path where that’s the better option? We have talked about that. We’ve talked about everything we can do with our team. We’re not there.”

The interesting mental exercise comes from imagining what would change for the Lakers by bringing Westbrook off the bench. Westbrook would be out of the Lakers’ starting lineup, which presumably would feature LeBron James and more active defenders and long-range shooters more prominently. Westbrook would play fewer minutes of his inefficient style that has not meshed well, particularly with James. He might get more free reign in those secondary units as the point guard, which could theoretically help him find his offensive rhythm.

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