As the 2023–24 NBA season comes to an end, the Los Angeles Lakers are still struggling to establish themselves. Following a thrilling run to win the first-ever NBA in-season tournament, the club has been unable to convert its success into wins and is currently hovering around the.500 level.
Following Wednesday night’s 110-96 loss to the Miami Heat, which saw LeBron James exit the arena without interacting with media, Shams Charania of The Athletic revealed further information on a “disconnect” between coach Darvin Ham and the squad.
Six people with firsthand knowledge of the matter claim that there is currently a growing gulf between Darvin Ham and the Lakers locker room, casting doubt on the head coach’s future. In order to allow them to talk freely about the subject, the individuals spoke with The Athletic under the condition of anonymity. According to those sources, Ham’s recent drastic changes to the starting lineup and rotation have caused a lack of coherence between the coach and the team, resulting in a rhythm that varies for many players on the club.
With D’Angelo Russell sidelined due to injury, the Lakers chose to start their tenth starting lineup of the regular season with Austin Reaves at point guard. According to Charania, finding consistency has become a difficulty due to the frequent lineup changes.
Given how highly Ham was regarded both before the season and after he guided the team to the Western Conference finals the previous season, this story is alarming. The Lakers still have time to turn things around and get their act together, but they need to play considerably better than they have in the past few games—they have only triumphed in three of their last twelve after losing on Wednesday.
