While the noise from the outside has amplified for the Lakers in regards to Darvin Ham, the noise internally is increasing as well. On top of the reported “deepening disconnect” with the locker room, the front office has heard complaints as well.
On a recent episode of the No Cap Room podcast with Yahoo Sports NBA, NBA insider Jake Fischer discussed the ongoings with the Lakers and what he is hearing.
“I think this is the tip of the iceberg of this guy being legitimately on the hot seat right now. There’s just a lot of chatter from people around the organization that he’s not the guy that’s going to be able to get this thing over the hump. Now, look, they were able to overcome a 2-10 start last season to make the Western Conference Finals so he’s proven the ability to right a ship and steer them out of stormy waters to some beautiful island somewhere else in the postseason picture. But the noise is very loud. There’s a lot of people very frustrated. A lot of agents calling the front office frustrated about their guys not getting the right opportunities.”
Before the alarm bells ring louder, this is almost certainly not abnormal. An agent’s job is to have his client in the best position to succeed and each year, every team has players that feel they are being misused.
If anything, this only serves to further validate the locker room disconnect that was reported. And part of the problem is that things are always worse when you’re losing. If a team is winning, everyone is much happier to sacrifice.
At the same time, just about every player has had a chance to make an impact this year, so it’d be interesting to know who is calling the front office. If it’s Jaxson Hayes’ agent, then you laugh and hang up. If it’s Rui Hachimura’s, you understand the complaints a bit more. Context probably matters here.
The two players who might have the biggest grievances are Austin Reaves and Christian Wood, players who have had their roles and minutes expanded recently. Both have legitimate reasons to be upset, so if they were among those calling, you wouldn’t blame them.
Ultimately, though, this is another reason in a growing list of them that the seat is getting hotter for Ham.
