“Stop these dumba** lineups!” Darvin Ham SLAMMED for scapegoating Lakers roster for disappointing results

Darvin Ham new starting 5 raised many questions against his coaching techniques.

“Stop these dumba** lineups!” Darvin Ham SLAMMED for scapegoating Lakers roster for disappointing results

Gilbert Arenas and Darvin Ham (Credits: Complex and Yahoo Sports)

On Christmas Day, the Boston Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 126-115 to cap off their successful road trip. The Celtics got off to a fast start and led by 18 points at one point in the first quarter. After their Christmas loss, it perplexed LA Lakers fans as to why Darvin Ham benched two of his starters, Cam Reddish and Jarred Vanderbilt.

There were no significant threats from beyond the arc because Ham started with a large lineup that created offensive difficulties. Ham benched D’Angelo Russell for the Lakers’ encounter with the Boston Celtics. Along with Anthony Davis, Reddish, Vanderbilt, and Taurean Prince, he started LeBron James as a point guard. Shannon Sharpe and Gilbert Arenas, the hosts of Nightcap, talked about it on their show as well.

Gilbert Arenas said,

FS Video
Nobody told you to sub the dud who averages 1.5 and put him as a starter. When are you going to take responsibility for the lineup you are putting out? Now you sub in Van, which pushes you down to 68 points a game. The worst team in the NBA, the Detroit Pistons, they're averaging 73 points as a starting 5. Stop these dumba** lineups.

Gilbert discussed how the starting five of the Lakers performed when they were struggling and used to average 82 points. He made a comparison to the current situation, stating that they are averaging 68 points, which is less than the current worst NBA team, the Detroit Pistons. They score 73 points on average, indicating that the lineups are difficult for the Lakers to use.

Darvin Ham wants LeBron James and Anthony Davis to maintain their workload

There’s a good deal of uncertainty right now regarding the Los Angeles Lakers. Their recent play, having dropped six of their last nine games and sitting eighth in the Western Conference with a 17–15 record, is causing people to take notice.

Their offensive struggles are visible as they rank 23rd in offensive rating and 17th in scoring, despite having respectable defensive stats. Due to these offensive difficulties, LeBron James and Anthony Davis are playing longer minutes.

Darvin Ham
Darvin Ham (Credits: Los Angeles Times)

LeBron James and Anthony Davis are putting in a lot of work, but coach Darvin Ham doesn’t seem concerned. Taking in their outstanding performance, he appears to see the longer playing time as a plus. Darvin Ham said, 

Not really. Because it's not just them being out here, they're excelling at a high level. Both of these guys are playing at a high level and they want to be on the floor.

With his average of 35.8 minutes per game, Davis is ranking ninth in the NBA in terms of individual contributions. James, meanwhile, averages 25.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game while maintaining an excellent shooting percentage, despite concerns regarding the minutes played at this point in his career (34.3 per game). Davis has been especially influential in December, averaging 29.2 points and 12.5 rebounds per game.

In case you missed it: