Speaking to the media on the night before Game 3, Lakers coach Darvin Ham was asked about a previous comment from Anthony Davis, where he admitted that the Lakers have stretches where they “don’t always know what we’re doing.” Ham did his best to brush off the comment and chalked it up to Davis, expressing frustration toward their deficit in the series.
“I just think sometimes the plays don’t turn out the way they should’ve, the frustration sets in a little bit. I don’t think it’s about us not being organized. I have incredibly valuable coaches on my staff and we pride ourselves, whether it’s in practice, games, or shoot-around, on being highly efficient and organized. I’ll just chalk that up to being frustrated. It’s an emotional game with the way it ended and all of that but I’ll agree to disagree on that one.”
Darvin Ham said he took Anthony Davis’ comments after G2 that the Lakers “have stretches when we don’t know what we’re doing” as “frustration”, and he’ll “agree to disagree” with AD.
Ham said the Lakers coaching staff prides itself on being organized. pic.twitter.com/WtEzhYiW4I
— michael corvo (@michaelcorvo_) April 24, 2024
The Lakers have had no answer for the Denver Nuggets and their struggles date back to last season. Going into Game 2 on Monday, the Lakers were winless in their last 9 games against Denver and that streak continued after they gave up a 20-point lead to lose the game in the fourth quarter off a Jamal Murray walk-off fadeaway.
Dejected, demoralized, and defeated, Anthony Davis didn’t have much to say after the most recent loss and he could only admit that the Lakers were unprepared for the task at hand. Even with the full team healthy, they had no way to slow the Nuggets down or respond to their plays and they could not generate enough offense to keep up with their late-game push.
For a coach that many fans have already turned on, it’s just not a good look for the team’s best player to be so open about the team’s failure to properly scheme and gameplan for the playoffs and it begs the question of if Ham is the right man for this assignment. Regardless of what anyone thinks now, a sweep in round one may very well cost the man his job.
A Must-Win Game In Los Angeles
The Lakers were pretty solid at home this year, and it’s back in the Crypto.com arena that they’ll fight for the fate of their season. If they lose again, and go down 3-0, the series is essentially over as no team has mounted a comeback after losing the first three games. Against the Nuggets, the defending champs, and the team that beat them last year, the Lakers have no room for error.
On Thursday, the Lakers will have to give everything they have to save the series and avoid a sweep but the odds are heavily stacked against them, especially with Nikola Jokic playing some of the best basketball of his career right now.
With two monster performances against Denver in the first two games, Anthony Davis is filling his role to perfection and he’s doing everything he can to try and stop the bleeding and respond to the Nuggets’ never-ending onslaught. As the team’s primary playmaker and ball handler, LeBron is also carrying a heavy burden this post-season and he’ll have to be nearly perfect to give the Lakers a chance in the series.
But until everyone is on the same page in the locker room, both coaches and players, the Lakers will always be playing at a major disadvantage. Between now and Thursday, Darvin Ham and the coaching staff need to make it clear to their players what their plan is for the next 48 minutes on the court.
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