Lakers: Darvin Ham Previously Had Approval of LeBron James & Klutch Sports

Darvin Ham appears to be an acceptable head coaching candidate for LeBron James and Klutch Sports.

Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham is the soup du jour at the moment when it comes to the conversations surrounding the Lakers head coaching search. Last weekend, the Lakers received permission to interview Ham. 

In this day and age, organizations need the buy-in, or sometimes event he approval, of their franchise superstar when it comes to a new coaching hire.  For the Lakers, that means ensuring LeBron James, and his agency, Klutch Sports, is on board with whoever the Lakers hire.

Per ESPN's Kevin Arnovitz, LeBron and Klutch had previously supported the idea of the Lakers bringing in Ham as the head coach back in 2019. Arnovitz explained on an appearance this Tuesday on Locked on Lakers with the Kamenetzsky brothers.

“I know as a source that he was on the OK list of the LeBron James/Rich Paul (group) last time..."

Ham has been a member of Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer's coaching staffs dating back to Coach Bud's Atlanta days. Arnovitz believe that's a credit to Ham since working for Budenholzer is no picnic. The ESPN writer rattled off the other successful members of Budenholzer's coaching tree.

"He [Ham] gets it! And there is something to be said for that, because look who the graduates are. I think history is treating Kenny Atkinson really well. Quin Snyder. Taylor Jenkins. Need I go on?"

Arnovitz isn't alone in thinking that Ham could be a potential fit in Los Angeles. Substack's Marc Stein is also in favor of the Lakers hiring Ham if they go the assistant coach route.

"Milwaukee's Darvin Ham is the most sensible name from the league's assistant coaching ranks because A) Ham is long overdue for his head-coaching shot and B) he has the requisite personality and presence to embrace the challenge of coaching James."

Much to the chagrin of some NBA fans, teams have to consult their superstar players when it comes to head coaching hires.

If Ham's name hasn't been scratched off of LeBron's list, it could be a successful partnership.