Fact Check: Did Lakers fire Darvin Ham after their Playoffs exit courtesy of Nuggets? Debunking viral rumor

The future of Darvin Ham is once again in the spotlight after the LA Lakers were unceremoniously sent home from the NBA Playoffs by the Denver Nuggets. However, a viral post on X, claiming that the head coach has already been fired, is gaining some traction.

Upon first glance, it seems like the post was made by trusted NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski. However, upon examining it, one could see that the account does not belong to the real Wojnarowski, meaning the report is false.

The account's name is "Adrian Wojnarowski fan," with the word "fan" being written in minuscule letters, making them easy to miss.

Furthermore, Wojnarowski's official account has the username "@wojespn," while the account that made the post is called "@wojkespn."

Upon further examination, the false Wojnarowski account's bio also claims that it is not affiliated with the real Adrian Wojnarowski. The account exists for satire and parody purposes only.

Taking all these into consideration, it is safe to say that the Lakers haven't made an official decision on Darvin Ham's future. At the time of writing, Ham remains the Lakers head coach. He signed a four-year deal in 2022 after Frank Vogel was fired as the team's head coach.

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Michael Malone praises Darvin Ham after Nuggets beat Lakers

Darvin Ham is at the receiving end of vitriol from LA Lakers fans after they were eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. Many have been calling for him to be fired even before the Playoffs started, as LeBron and co. struggled to get wins consistently through the regular season. Those calls for him to be fired are now louder than ever.

Through all of this, Ham has received some praise, and from his rival coach no less. During the post-game press conference, Nuggets head coach Mike Malone spoke highly of Ham.

"I think Darvin Ham is a hell of a coach," Malone said. "That's not an easy job and I think Darvin does it with class and I think he and his staff deserve credit for that. He's a good man, good coach and I wish him all the best."

Before becoming the Lakers head coach, Darvin Ham had several years of experience as an assistant coach. In fact, he started his career as an assistant in 2011 with the Lakers. He then coached the Atlanta Hawks as an assistant from 2013-2017. When Mike Budenholzer moved on to the Milwaukee Bucks, so did Ham. He was an assistant when the Bucks won a title in 2021.

Ham joined LA as a head coach in 2022 in the aftermatch of Frank Vogel's firing.