After the Los Angeles Lakers decided to part ways with head coach Darvin Ham, reports immediately started surfacing about his potential replacement.
L.A. Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue seems to be at the top of the list for the Lakers, which makes sense given his history with LeBron James.
Lue has one year left on his Clippers contract though, which seems to complicate things for the Lakers. Additionally, it was reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN that the Clippers are hoping to sign Lue to an extension:
The LA Clippers are planning to pursue a contract extension with coach Tyronn Lue that will allow him to avoid entering the final year of his deal in 2025-26, sources told ESPN on Friday.
Following that report, the Clippers were eliminated from the playoffs, which allowed Lue to talk about his future and he seems to be on the same page about remaining with his current organization, via NBA TV:
“I hope so. I didn’t come here to bounce around and go all over the place. Mr. Ballmer, Lawrence (Frank), Mark (Hughes), and Trent (Redden) have all been great to me. This is where I want to be. Hopefully, they feel the same way.”
Lue was also asked about the rumors linking him to the Lakers specifically and again stated his desire to stay with the Clippers:
“I don’t really have a comment on that. It’s great to be wanted. That’s a really good feeling. Like I said, I want to be here and hopefully we’re able to solidify that.”
The Lakers, of course, had a chance to hire Lue back in 2019 but were unable to come to an agreement on a contract with them only offering him three years. They hired Frank Vogel instead and went on to win a championship that season, while Lue eventually replaced Doc Rivers a year later on the Clippers.
If Lue does indeed stay with the Clippers then the Lakers will need to look elsewhere for their next coach with JJ Redick, Kenny Atkinson, Charles Lee and Mike Budenholzer already being among the reported candidates.
Former Lakers coach Darvin Ham drawing interest elsewhere?
As for now former Lakers head coach Darvin Ham, it may not take long for him to land on his feet as reports are indicating that he is expected to garner interest in other coaching searches across the league either in this cycle or the next.
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