Unbelievably, the head coach of the Lakers was suspected of the awful deal, and…

Unbelievably, the head coach of the Lakers was suspected of the awful deal, and…

El Segundo: Darvin Ham was 14 years old when he experienced his greatest fear.

In what Ham once described as a “drug deal gone bad,” he and his brother were driving to get pizza when gunshots sprayed across the street in their Saginaw, Michigan, neighborhood. A bullet that was never meant for him struck Ham in the jaw and lodged in the back of his neck, narrowly avoiding death.

It’s possible that a lot of people would prefer to put the trauma behind them. However, the lesson that day taught Ham to never take anything for granted has grown to be a major tenet of his existence. Ham mentioned the 1988 shooting when questioned about the pressure of being the Lakers’ coach. He won’t get nervous about a new job after overcoming that.

“When something like that happens to you, it will either make you fearful or fearless,” he said. “It gave me courage.”

On Monday, the 48-year-old highlighted his dedication to toughness and accountability in his first official day as the Lakers’ head coach. Here, in 2011, Ham began his NBA coaching career as a member of Mike Brown’s player development staff.

Since then, he’s developed a reputation as a straightforward assistant with a knack for fostering connections—qualities he’ll need to attempt to restore the Lakers to their former status as a championship contender after they were reduced to a lottery team the previous season.

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka stressed that although Ham’s X&O foundation was developed under a championship-winning coaching staff in Milwaukee, Ham’s character attributes are what won the coaching committee’s unanimous approval. Pelinka feels the team needs an injection of Ham’s toughness after they finished 33-49 and missed the playoffs completely following a highly anticipated offseason.

Pelinka stated, “I believe that one of the things we lacked last year was an identity of toughness.” “We are looking forward to seeing how a coach with his leadership style will contribute those qualities to our team in the upcoming season.”

The Lakers appeared to be confident that Russell Westbrook would return, which is one of the talking points from Monday that will dominate league talk in the upcoming weeks.

Just two months after revealing the details of his tense relationship with former head coach Frank Vogel, Westbrook stood to the side of the gym during the press conference.

Although there have been whispers that the Lakers want to let go of the divisive Westbrook, who has a $47.1 million contract option to sign later this month, Ham has presented a very different picture of what the 33-year-old former MVP could offer the group in his rookie campaign.

Russell is one of the best players our league has ever seen, and he still has a ton left in the tank, so don’t get it messed up, he said. “I’m not sure why people keep trying to ignore him. I’m going to approach him the same way I approach every other player I’ve met.

Ham promised improved offensive spacing with a four-out, one-in alignment (presumably referring to Davis’ move to full-time center) if the Lakers stuck with their star lineup of Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis the following season. In addition, Ham has a great defensive background that he developed while playing on the bench for Mike Budenholzer in Atlanta and Milwaukee after joining Detroit’s 2004 championship team.

The most poignant parts of Ham’s press conference were when he discussed Budenholzer, saying that the coach gave him responsibilities on both sides of the ball, as well as scouting and acting as head coach during Budenholzer’s absence due to COVID-19 last season, setting him up for success. Ham’s deep baritone cracked as he spoke about the coach he worked with for nine years.