Five Takeaways From Darvin Ham’s Introductory Press Conference
A New Era Has Begun in La La Land
On June 6, the Los Angeles Lakers formally introduced their 28th head coach in franchise history: Darvin Ham. A former player who spent eight years in the NBA and won a championship with the 2004 Detriot Pistons, Ham returns to the purple and gold after first starting out as an assistant under Mike Brown from 2011 to 2013. He went on to have stints with the Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks, the latter of whom he won a title as the lead assistant last season.
Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said, “This is an incredibly bright and promising day in Lakers history…It’s easy to feel grateful when you find a candidate that you feel is the ideal fit for what the franchise is looking for, and that’s what coach Ham represents to us.”
Ham acknowledged the love and respect that he has for the Lakers: “Knowing that this is the team and the franchise that gave me my start — albeit that it was Mike Brown that hired me, the Buss family had to sign off on it — the fact that I got my start here, this place will always be special to me.”
Here are four key takeaways from Ham’s first remarks as the Lakers’ new leading man.
5. No Pressure with the Lake Show
With everyone that first comes through the door as a Laker, there is undoubtedly a lot of pressure when it comes to being part of such a prestigious organization. Ham was asked about this, and he provided an anecdote that proved he was made for this job: “I grew up in Saginaw, Michigan, I was shot in the face by accident on April 5, 1988. If you go through something like that, it’s going to do one of two things: make you fearful or fearless. It made me fearless, I don’t feel no pressure, it’s basketball.”
He looked at coaching the Lakers as less of pressure and more of a challenge.
This mindset is exactly what the Lakers need and what their fans need to hear, especially with a franchise that has high expectations and a standard of championship excellence. It’s refreshing to hear their new head coach explicitly state that he feels no pressure here because the events of his life shaped him into who he is today. That’s the type of leader Ham is, and he’s the type of leader the purple and gold have needed at the helm.
4. Ham’s On-Court Vision and Player Development
Ham acknowledged that though there are plenty of “defensive gurus and offensive gurus” in today’s NBA, his head coaching philosophy is a well-rounded one.
“Both sides of the ball affect one another,” he said. “If you’re able to play great defense, then your offense is gonna look great.”
“The preparation is the key to it,” he continued. “It’s the individual workouts in the summer, the practice floor, shoot around, and the game floor, but they all have to be connected with a lot of film in between.”
Ham noted in his presser that he plans on running a “four-out, one-in” style of spacing on offense. However, he noted that everything starts on defense.
“Defensively is where you’re gonna see us make our biggest leaps and bounds. We have to commit to the defensive side of the ball, or we won’t have a chance to do anything,” he remarked.
Ham’s player development is equally well-rounded. He wants his players to be “cerebral” by having them watch film and making sure it translates to the game, all while being united as a team.
“It’s more about the environment, [and] the culture you set. Just being competitive, being together, and being accountable.”
3. Coaching the Big Three
Regarding LeBron, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook, Ham said he wants “to make those guys comfortable where they’re not having to run to a telephone booth and throw a cape on and save the day. Everything has to be a team effort.” He noted that holding each of the stars accountable — what he calls a “facts over feelings” approach — will trickle down into the rest of the roster and ultimately lead to more success from everyone.
Ham is also vying for consistency in his coaching: “If there are mistakes made, I have to be able to coach those three guys like I do with the rest of the roster. Once you see the film and it’s a fact that you missed your assignment, that has to be pointed out. If I can’t point that out to one of our big three, then the last man or somebody in the rotation [won’t] take what we’re doing seriously.”
Lastly, he emphasized that Anthony Davis will be “the key,” saying that his play will be “the foundation of the standard we set in a ‘Darvin Ham’ era.”
He also stated, “LeBron is gonna be LeBron, Russ is gonna be Russ. We need consistency out of Anthony Davis. We need him to be healthy, we need him to be in a good mental space and we need him to be consistent as possible and back to playing that championship-type basketball.”
2. Coaching Russell Westbrook
Speaking of Russ, his situation with the Lakers has taken plenty of twists and turns, but he appears to have the full support of LA’s new head coach (emphasis mine):
“Don’t get it messed up. Russ is one of the best players our league has ever seen and still has a ton left in that tank. I don’t know why people want to write him off.”
Ham will approach Russ as he has approached other players, emphasizing on- and off-ball habits, making sure he establishes a rhythm with James and Davis and the rest of the team, and sharing the load on both sides of the ball.
“As far as what his role is gonna be, I expect him to be the same tenacious, high-energy player that he’s been his entire career,” he said.
1. Sacrifice
A theme preached last year that was never truly seen, the term “sacrifice” will matter even more in the Darvin Ham era of the Lakers.
When asked about his conversations with Westbrook, Ham replied, “Russ and I have had some really really great one-on-one convos, and the biggest word that came out of those discussions was ‘sacrifice.’…We’re gonna sacrifice whatever we gotta do — and it’s not just Russ. There’s gonna be sacrifices that LeBron has to make, that AD has to make, on down the line through the rest of our roster.”
He added, “There’s no achieving anything without all parties sharing the load, sacrificing, and depending on one another.”
Pelinka expanded on the idea of sacrifice by highlighting what stood out to him and the Lakers during their interviews with Ham: “He was a player in the league that made every sacrifice to be great. He wasn’t a superstar, he knew what it took to be in the gap, to do the little things to make his teams great, like the championship team he was on.” This attribute, along with the toughness that Ham provides, will go a long way in ensuring the Lakers get back towards their winning ways.
Overall, Darvin Ham’s comments make me very optimistic about the Lakers’ future over the next few years. It also helps that he will have a role in shaping the rest of the roster next to Pelinka, and it will be very exciting to see his vision come to life over the next few months and as the season begins.
