“He is wholeheartedly deserving to be in the GOAT conversation” - Darvin Ham says hat's off to LeBron James for dealing with the pressure when he joined the league, says he’s thrilled to be able to coach him

LeBron James and the LA Lakers are looking to right the ship after a disastrous 33-49 run, and new coach Darvin Ham is excited for the upcoming season.

Expectations will be high for the first-year head coach and the Lakers, as time is running out for James and company to make a run at another championship. That was the case last season as well, until the disastrous campaign unfolded.

On the "All the Smoke" podcast, Ham spoke in depth about his elation to coach James:

"I know where he is in his career. He's done everything possible there is to do as an individual basketball player, and you know he's conquered everything. But, again, we talk about sacrifice, and first thing people think about is sacrificing scoring output or shots or something like that. No, sacrifice is making selfless plays.

"If you don't have the ball pushing it on the break, are you willing to sprint and open up an open shot for your teammate? Are you willing to box out even though you're not gonna get that damn rebound, but you putting your body on another body so your man can come in and scoop it up, and we can get going with our pace?

"So, that's the thing I'm thinking about, and my hat's off to him seeing him when he first came in the league and all the pressure that was put on – – so-called pressure – that was put on him, and he's risen to the occasion time and time again, and he is wholeheartedly deserving to be in that GOAT conversation.

"And he's top five that are alive in my opinion, and I'm thrilled to be able to coach him. And I'm gonna try to learn from him."

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LeBron James and Darvin Ham look to get the LA Lakers back on track

LA Lakers coach Darvin Ham expresses excitement to coach LeBron James.

The LA Lakers will, as usual, draw plenty of attetnion next season. The roster features big names in LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook.

The Lakers struggled last year with injuries and poor play. If the team wants to have a chance to have a bounce-back season, they will need to stay healthy and lock in defensively.

Fans will be watching to see what the Lakers will look like with Darvin Ham as the new coach.

The Lakers have the starpower. But now the team will have to grind to get back into contention in a deep Western Conference.