Lakers head coach Darvin Ham offered a strong statement to make it clear how he feels about all the teams that didn’t hire him last offseason.
“They f—ed up royally,” Ham told NBA reporters Marc Stein and Chris Haynes on the #thisleague UNCUT podcast this week.
The Lakers hired Ham in May 2022, and the move worked out well for Los Angeles, as Ham guided the team to a Western Conference finals appearance after a slow start. The Lakers finished with a 43–39 record despite winning just two of their first 12 games.
During the interview, Stein named the 10 teams that spoke with Ham last year but didn’t hire him. Those teams included the Celtics, Hornets, Bulls, Pacers, Timberwolves, Magic, Kings, Wizards, Clippers and Hawks. Five of those teams appeared in the playoffs this past season, but only the Celtics advanced as far as the Lakers did.
Ham has three seasons remaining on his contract with the Lakers.
