Report casts serious doubt on Darvin Ham's future with Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers’ 2023-24 season ended similarly to last year, only a few rounds earlier in the NBA playoffs. Following a 108-106 loss in Game 5 to the Denver Nuggets on Jamal Murray’s second game-winner of the series, the Lakers' attention will now shift to an offseason filled with question marks.

A first-round exit at the hands of the defending champions wouldn’t typically bring this magnitude of concern, but the Lakers were expected to take a step forward after being swept in last year’s Western Conference Finals. Instead, they fell in five games to the team that’s had their number more than any other over the past two seasons.

Among the biggest looming question marks is the future of head coach Darvin Ham. While that question sits behind the debate over what LeBron James will opt to do, Ham’s future in Los Angeles comes with an ever-growing belief that he’s coached his last game for the Lakers. As The Athletic reported following the Lakers’ Game 5 loss on Monday night, some believe it’s “highly unlikely” Ham returns.

The Lakers’ unflattering finish leaves Ham’s future as head coach in serious peril, multiple league and team sources tell The Athletic, with some stakeholders indicating it’s highly unlikely he’ll return. The plan is to reassess everything that went wrong in the coming days before making a final decision. In 2022, Ham signed a four-year deal in the range of $5 million per season, so the team would be assuming the remainder of his deal if he is fired.

Ham has been mentioned regarding the coaching hot seat since early in the season, but the rumors and reports that have come out during the team’s brief playoff run cast even more doubt. While he’s in just his second season with the Lakers, the team has posted a 90-74 regular season record over his two years at the helm while going 9-12 in postseason play.