LeBron James‘ 16-year-old son Bryce made noise on the Internet by reposting a TikTok video which mocked Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham after the team’s elimination from the 2024 NBA playoffs at the hands of the Denver Nuggets.
“The Nuggets are on a 15-0 run. Darvin Ham:” the image read along with a picture of the cartoon character Arthur smiling with his hands in his pockets, suggesting Ham did nothing to intervene while his team was being outplayed.
The early postseason exit puts Ham on the hot seat, as the purple and gold lacked consistency throughout the regular season to end up facing the #1 seed and reigning champions Nuggets in the first round.
This result also raises other question marks around the Lakers, with LeBron‘s future as the biggest mystery heading into the offseason. The King has a $51.4 million player option for the 2024-25 season, so what many wonder is whether he’ll stay in LA or explore his options in free agency.
Following Monday’s season-ending loss, James teased retirement. On Wednesday, the four-time NBA champion made it clear he’ll take time to make a decision with his family and agents.
Darvin Ham still under contract with Lakers, but for how long?
But of course, the future of Ham also looks up in the air, as it remains unclear whether the organization will take another direction in the summer. A former assistant for the Milwaukee Bucks, Ham signed a four-year, $20 million deal with the Lakers in 2022.
In his first year as head coach, he saw the Lakers make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals after an impressive resurgence in the second half of the season thanks to many changes at the February trade deadline.
However, the sweep by Denver proved Ham still had plenty of work to do, and his job seemed to be in jeopardy earlier this year as the Lakers struggled to get results. During the Nuggets series, “Fire Ham” chants were heard at the Crypto.com Arena.
“It’s been extremely challenging,” Ham said, via ESPN. “Everyone that’s been in and out of the lineup. Being criticized for not having a consistent rotation when I don’t have consistent healthy bodies. The thing that frustrates me, and I love this job, I love the pressure that comes with it, I’ve always been calm in the midst of chaos … [But] common sense tends to go out the window when you talk about my job in particular.“
