Amid Darvin Ham’s Talent ‘Mismanagement’, Veteran Analyst Points Finger At Jeanie Buss For Lakers’ Playoff Loss

In the last two seasons, Darvin Ham always found himself at the receiving end. Despite reaching the postseason twice and going deep on one occasion, the 50-year-old continued to receive hate from the Lakers Nation. Eventually, the Los Angeles Lakers dismissed him from the coaching unit after the playoff exit. While it seemed like a necessary decision for the LA side’s future, veteran NBA analyst Jason Timpf had a different take.

In the latest episode of The Colin Cowherd Podcast, Timpf dropped two insightful takes surrounding the Lakers’ early exit from the postseason. Firstly, he blamed Jeanie Buss/front office instead of Darvin Ham for the Denver Nuggets loss. Following that, he stressed that Ham wasn’t prepared for the season. He said, “Who were the two guys that let them down in that series? Rui (Hachimura) and D’Lo front office is why they lost to Denver.” He argued that both stars mirrored the capabilities of LeBron James and Austin Reaves and considered it a redundancy in the lineup. And, in the same vein, he blamed the front office for roping them in.

Following that, Timpf accused Ham of mismanaging the talent available in the roster. He added, “Darvin was not ready… He grossly mismanaged the talent on the roster.” After making this claim, he went on to state his reasons. He turned back the clock and reminded the NBA world of the Lakers’ 3-10 slump after the In-season Tournament. He criticized Ham for not backing D’Angelo Russell for a poor run on that stretch.

Jason Timpf argued that Ham increased Cam Reddish‘s minutes and Taurean Prince’s plays in order to mask D’Lo‘s slump. It eventually backfired on the side, as they went on a losing spree immediately after their In-season tournament success.

He further stated that, if Darvin Ham backed Russell went with their strong starting five, the team could have evaded the slump. Eventually, they could have achieved better seeding and avoided the Nuggets.

Jason Timpf accuses Darvin Ham for being ‘soft’

After accusing Ham of the mismanagement of talent, he also pointed out the flaw in Ham’s approach. Again, he turned back the clock and spoke about the period when the Lakers hired him. Highlighting Ime Udoka’s work in transforming the Celtics, “a soft group into like a really tough group,” in 2021, he stated that the Lakers went for their former player. Notably, Udoka was available for the hiring after his controversial exit from the Celtics.

He further compared Ham’s approach to Nuggets’ coach Michael Malone’s. He stated that Malone had an aggressive approach, and held his players accountable for their mistakes. Timpf even pointed out how heated the Nuggets timeouts were. On the other end, describing Ham’s coaching, he said, “He was too much of a benevolent motivator. He never held those guys accountable on a day-to-day basis.” 

Importantly, he brought the gags along when he compared Malone and Ham’s courtside activity. While the Nuggets coach was actively coaching his team from the courtside, Ham had a relaxed approach. Describing it, he said, “Darvin Ham is just sitting chilling on the sideline. He’s a very passive coach.” Was Ham’s approach the main reason for the Lakers’ early exit? Let us know in the comments below.