Lakers News: Recent Perennial Playoff Team Coach Serving As Unpaid Darvin Ham Consultant

Darvin Ham seeks advice from a former Lakers assistant.

A handful of coaches were on the list of candidates to become the next Lakers head coach this past summer. Ultimately, the Lakers landed on longtime Lakers/Hawks/Bucks assistant Darvin Ham. Another name on the list was former Utah Jazz head coach Quinn Snyder. 

Snyder is still very much involved in coaching. Ham revealed to OC Registers Kyle Goon that he is constantly communicating with Snyder. 

“Opposites attract, man,” Ham said of him and Snyder. “That’s my dude. Obviously, his swag is way different from my type of swag. But we just find the humor in certain things, and we have this bond, this connection that keeps life in perspective.”

Ham has given Snyder credit as his pro bono consultant working “on a Utah check” after Snyder stepped away from the Jazz this summer. They talk at odd hours, recapping games and talking about best practices. Said Ham: “That dude (Snyder) sends me some long-ass text messages, too.”

But Snyder, 56, downplays his role: “I mostly ask questions, try to help him think about stuff. He knows his team, and he knows what he wants from them.”

Even though Ham has coached in the NBA for over a decade, this is the first time he is the lead man in the coaching side of things. 

Ham and Snyder were assistants with the Lakers during the team's 2011-2012 season under Mike Brown. They have a solid rapport together, and Ham trusts the 56-year-old. 

And why wouldn’t he? Snyder led the Jazz to the playoffs in six of the eight seasons he coached for Utah before departing in early June. 

The Lakers got off to a slow start this season but have won four of their last five games, and Ham has had a ton to do with it. 

He’s made the necessary changes to win games, even if that means bringing a former MVP in Russell Westbrook off the bench. 

Seeing Ham better himself and seeking the help he feels he needs is excellent.