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Darvin Ham’s LA Lakers are on the verge of getting swept in the first round against the Denver Nuggets. Following another meltdown versus the defending champs, the Lakers are a loss away from getting the broom for the second straight year in the playoffs. Game 4 on Saturday will be LA’s last hope of extending its season.
In the Western Conference Finals last year, Ham changed his starting unit to adjust to Jamal Murray’s rampage, particularly in the fourth quarters. He took out D’Angelo Russell who had a tough series for Dennis Schroder. The move nearly worked as LA played its best in the series and nearly avoided a sweep.
This year, Darvin Ham has already declared that he will not change his first five despite another disastrous outing from Russell. Basketball fans lit him up on X, formerly Twitter for the decision:
“Ham needs to be fired yesterday”
One fan already figured out what’s going to happen in Game 4:
“12th consecutive L against the Nuggets loading…”
Another fan is so fed up that he is asking Darvin Ham to field a drastically different unit:
“Start dinwiddie, Vincent, Christie, Prince & Hayes”
The sarcasm is dripping from @kodymack
“Why not if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”
Darvin Ham’s LA Lakers might be up 3-0 against any other team but they just can’t get past the Nikola Jokic-led Denver Nuggets. Los Angeles had double-digit leads in each of those games but wilted when it counted the most. They were excruciatingly close to beating the Nuggets on the road in Game 2 but Jamal Murray saved the day for the hosts.
Darvin Ham chose to stick with D’Angelo Russell
In the LA Lakers’ near win against the Denver Nuggets in Game 2, D’Angelo Russell had 23 points that were highlighted by seven 3-pointers. In Games 1 and 3, he combined to score 13 points on 1-for-15 shooting from deep. He missed every shot he took two nights ago, forcing even the home crowd to serenade him with boos and whistles.
Darvin Ham hasn’t lost faith that Russell will come through. After 11 straight losses to the Denver Nuggets, he still believes that “D-Lo” will step up and help prevent a 12th consecutive loss.
The fans aren’t convinced, though, that the point guard will play better. They’ve seen enough to declare that Ham should be fired for stubbornly keeping him in the lineup. Both Russell and the coach will be under the microscope when Game 4 starts.
