The Lakers are in desperate need of a shakeup there could be one coming very soon, according to The Athletic podcast host and former Thunder forward Josh Huestis.
Speaking on a recent episode of The Athletic NBA Show, Huestis predicted Lakers coach Darvin Ham would be replaced by assistant Phil Handy at some point this season.
“I think Darvin Ham is done,” Huestis said. “Regardless of that win (against the Clippers), it’s over. That win postponed the inevitable.
” … The second half of my hot take is that I believe Phil Handy will take over as interim (head coach). As far as having a guy who is respected throughout that locker room, it’s Phil Handy. Who does LeBron work with in the offseason? Who does Austin Reaves work with? Everyone works with him in the offseason.
“He’s respected, he’s a guy who I think all of them would follow and listen to. I think that you put Phil Handy interim head coach role, but that is in name only. They need a filler, they need somebody to be the head coach, and LeBron will handle the game plan going forward.”
This prediction follows an eye-opening report from Shams Charania and Jovan Buha citing six sources who claim there is a “deepening disconnect between Darvin Ham and the Lakers locker room”, in part due to head-scratching lineup changes.
Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer has also reported that there is a lot of chatter within the Lakers organization that Darvin Ham is not the right guy to coach the team.