Lakers Players ‘Hated’ Playing For Darvin Ham, Have ‘Loved’ Everything JJ Redick Has Brought To Table

The Los Angeles Lakers fired Darvin Ham as head coach and employed previous NBA guard JJ Redick, who has yet to coach above the youth level.

NBA, Los Angeles Lakers, JJ Redick, Darvin Ham — Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

Redick, who was podcast partners with LeBron James, played 15 years in the NBA with the Orlando Magic, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks.

In Ham’s 2 seasons, the Lakers went 90-74. The Denver Nuggets swept Los Angeles in the 2023 Western Conference Finals and beat the Lakers once again in the preliminary of the 2024 playoffs.

Although the Lakers have actually just played 2 preseason video games (both losses) under Redick, NBA sources have actually informed Hoops Wire that gamers have “loved” whatever Redick has actually given the table.

Those exact same sources likewise stated that Lakers gamers “hated” betting Ham, who is now an assistant coach with the Bucks.

Anthony Davis, among the leading defensive gamers in the NBA, was never ever a fan of Ham’s drop protection protective method, sources stated. And LeBron, the leading scorer of perpetuity, wasn’t pleased when Ham attempted to restrict his minutes to start last season.

“Look, Darvin was a nice guy,” one NBA source stated. “Players liked him as a person. He’s easy to talk to. He’s a former player and won a championship. Players respected him as a person. But that was the biggest issue. They respected him as a person, not as a coach. His schemes, rotations and inability to take accountability for his mistakes rubbed guys the wrong way all year. They started tuning him out all the way back in December.”

The offense Redick has actually set up for the Lakers “blew away” one gamer, sources stated. From an X’s and O’s viewpoint, Redick has “run circles around Ham,” sources stated.

LeBron, among the most intelligent gamers in NBA history, “rolled his eyes” several times last season when Ham would prepare offending plays, sources stated. Redick’s offense is concentrated on screening and continuous motion and the gamers are “loving it,” sources stated.

“There wasn’t one player on the team who posted any message on social media after Darvin was fired,” a 2nd NBA source stated. “That wasn’t a coincidence.”