When you support arguably the most prolific NBA franchise in the history of the sport, expectations are understandably high.
Those who are fans of the Los Angeles Lakers are used to seeing their teams compete at the highest level. We’re talking about the days of Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, George Mikan, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and most recently, LeBron James.
After retooling in the offseason, this year’s team was expected — at the very least — to get back to the Western Conference Finals. Based on what we’ve seen this year, that goal is far from a guarantee.
Furthermore, when venturing into the fickle land of social media platforms, those supporting the Purple and Gold are not very happy with head coach Darvin Ham at the moment, questioning everything from his weird starting lineup decisions to his play calling after timeouts.
“Fire Ham” is trending. pic.twitter.com/PFJsCtXeVM
— 🎗NBA•Fan🎗 (@Klutch_23) December 31, 2023
On Saturday night, the Lakers lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves by a score of 108-106. As currently constituted, LA is 17-16 — sitting at No. 9 in the Western Conference. For a team with title aspirations, this is simply not good enough.
A scapegoat usually floats to the surface whenever a team is underachieving. In this case, the ire of the fan base sits squarely with Ham. LeBron James has stayed healthy this entire season. He’s also playing at a very high level.
One fan advocated for a pretty radical path forward this season:
When the Lakers get Dejounte Murray, fire Ham and sign Rondo as coach. pic.twitter.com/ne4gzTQBkt
— Rushin (@itsrushin) December 26, 2023
Another fan is ignoring team president Rob Pelinka, Ham’s direct boss, with an appeal to majority owner Jeanie Buss instead:
Please Fire Ham @JeanieBuss pic.twitter.com/NRSCgNi6uy
— Andrew Friedman Fan Club (@Nunez_247) December 31, 2023
When an instance of LA superstar point forward LeBron James questioning an ATO play was captured, fans on Twitter/X leapt all over it as proof positive Ham should be canned:
Ngl @Lakers I think it's time to fire ham bc wtf was that. https://t.co/zahQWgWVrD
— Frank Lucas (@EveryThinLakers) December 31, 2023
Anthony Davis usually bears the brunt of disgruntled fans. The frustration usually centers around his inability to stay on the floor for long stretches. Well, Davis has stayed perfectly healthy this entire year. Not only is he among the league leaders in minutes played, but he’s producing at an All-Star level (25.2 PPG, 12.4 RPG, 2.5 BPG).
Anthony Davis is averaging 31-12-3-2 on 59-53-75 shooting since the end of the In-Season Tournament.
The Lakers are 3-7 in that span.
What. A. Waste.
— Sam Quinn (@SamQuinnCBS) December 31, 2023
The phrase ‘FIRE HAM’ was trending on X following the loss to Minnesota. While unfairly so, Ham has become a meme for many based on his calm, hands-in-his-pockets demeanor from the sidelines.
When deep-diving into the team as a whole, some have become frustrated over Ham’s decision-making when it comes to rotation choices. Others have lamented over a lack of fluidity on offense.
It’ll be interesting to see whether this team can turn things around. A trade is likely coming in the next few weeks. If some sort of transaction can’t help turn things around, Ham might be approaching ‘hot seat’ territory by the end of the year.
