After losing to the Pelicans on the road, the Lakers suffered two consecutive defeats again, and their record fell to 17-17, a winning rate of 50%, ranking 9th in the West, ending a 23-year winning streak. Obviously, the Lakers' performance was unacceptable. The team was last season's Western Conference Finals team and completed a roster upgrade in the offseason. They have shown their dominance in this season's midseason tournament, however, without that $500,000 incentive, the Lakers don't seem to be able to function properly. Their defense lost its sense of urgency, its defensive efficiency plummeted, and the instability of the offense led to a tumultuous Lakers' record. James signed a three-year contract, but against the backdrop of the Lakers' sluggish record, some people are beginning to question whether he should leave.
The Lakers' poor record can be explained by some reason. For example, back-to-back away games, back-to-back games, and high-intensity midseason matches can lead to a decrease in the team's fitness, distraction, and injuries are also a cause. However, I remain convinced that a lineup like the Lakers, especially their frontcourt depth and hardness, should not perform so badly. The Lakers have a very neat roster, and they shouldn't look so mediocre with their improved strength, especially if James and Bushy are healthy and in good shape. Without a doubt, Darvin Ham has become the biggest problem for the Lakers, and he has been nicknamed "rookie coach." Ham has three years and $10.5 million left on his contract with the Lakers, which is relatively cheap for the entire league.
Despite the length of his contract, Hamm doesn't have much time left. Although there has been no news of a change of coach within the Lakers, the possibility of Ham stepping down does exist because James and Thick Eyebrows have repeatedly publicly expressed their dissatisfaction with the current team rotation. After the Lakers lost to the Spurs, Knicks, Bulls and Timberwolves in succession, James and thick eyebrows openly expressed their confusion about the current team rotation in interviews. Although they did not directly criticize the manager, the two key players made such a statement, and Hamm's problems were obvious. After that, Ham made a change, with Russell being moved to the bench and Vanderbilt coming into the starting lineup. However, instead of delivering the expected defensive efficiency, this adjustment led to the Lakers' stagnation on the offensive end, creating plenty of counter-attacking opportunities for opponents.
In 5 games, the Lakers have conceded an average of 119 points per game. The Lakers once again formed a backcourt partnership with Reaves and Russell on the bench, but the starting lineup lacked offensive ability, and the defensive level of the bench was not satisfactory, which was a headache. Vanderbilt has been consistent in the starting lineup, after all, his partnership with James and Davis has been excellent this season. Even with Russell and Reaves in the backcourt, the Lakers' defense has been very reliable. However, in order to strengthen the defense, the space on the offensive end was completely sacrificed, and this extreme approach has confused Lakers fans. Meanwhile, Hachimura's form has been up and down this season.
We've all seen Hachimura play well in the playoffs, playing well on the offensive end, being able to defend the opposition's key forwards, while also being able to play well with James and Davis. However, this season, Hamm has scheduled Hachimura's playing time very piecemeal. Even James has pointed this out on several occasions, saying in interviews that Hachimura needs to get more playing time, otherwise it will be difficult for the players to find the rhythm and form of the game. Especially when Hachimura played well, James made it clear that it was because he got extended playing time. In addition, Russell's performance in the playoffs was a real headache, but now the situation is that he seems to feel like he may be eliminated in the regular season, and sometimes he doesn't even dare to attack under the basket, completely losing confidence.
In addition to the pressure from the outside, Russell's maladaptation was also a big reason, and he felt very uncomfortable on the field. The unreasonable mix and use of personnel has caused the Lakers to be far from playing as well as they should when they have a strong roster, trying to lighten the burden on James and Davis, but actually making the responsibility of these two stars even heavier. Davis is not only responsible for scoring but also defensive on the court, and James has taken on multiple roles. The most obvious is that we often see James laying out tactical tasks at critical moments, and once James gets tired, Hamm's tactical arrangement is very fragile.
When the Lakers needed an open shot, Ham only arranged for James to receive the ball, and the time for him to handle the ball was also very limited, and the Lakers couldn't even complete the shot. What's even more bizarre is that if James hadn't spotted Reaves' condition in the game and called a timeout, the Lakers would likely have been reversed, and Ham was indifferent.