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Lakers coach Darvin Ham: ‘I think we’re close to a championship team’

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James Foglio
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James Foglio Sports Editor

James is a Basketball Insiders contributor. He earned his bachelor's degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University. James enjoys watching sports and helping gamblers win money.

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Sports Editor

Updated28 Sep 2023

Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham I think were close to a championship team

Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham is expressing full confidence in his L.A. roster ahead of the 2023-24 season, and the second-year head coach believes the Lakers are close to becoming a championship-caliber team.

“Absolutely [I think we’re close to a championship team],” Ham told ESPN’s Leonard Solms while speaking at the Basketball without Borders camp in South Africa.

“We have leadership like LeBron James and Anthony Davis; some of the talent we were able to bring back in Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell.”

Referring to a few NBA betting sites, the Los Angeles Lakers hold seventh-shortest odds to win next season’s championship in 2024. Check out which sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns, and Golden State Warriors.


“Then, you think about the guys we added in Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, Cam Reddish, Jaxson Hayes,” Darvin Ham added. “I think the sky is the limit for what we will be able to do. I think we added a lot of depth, a lot of guys that have skill, size and athleticism, so I look forward to all of that coming together.

“A coach I worked for always used to always say, ‘The most together team will win.’ I think the togetherness [helps separate champions from the rest] and obviously, you need to execute and have a team full of guys who are willing to sacrifice their personal goals, their personal agendas, to align themselves with what the team goal is and that’s to win the championship.”

Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham believes he has a championship team for the 2023-24 season; 2023 offseason moves

Indeed, the Lakers have made a number of moves this offseason. Former Minnesota Timberwolves guard Taurean Prince signed a one-year, $4.5 million deal during the open hours of free agency. Guard D’Angelo Russell re-signed on a two-year, $36 million contract extension as well.

Ex-Miami Heat guard Gabe Vincent also inked a three-year, $33 million deal with L.A. Not to mention, forward Rui Hachimura re-signed on a three-year, $51 million contract and former Phoenix Suns wing Cam Reddish signed a two-year, $4.63 million deal.

Earlier this month, Anthony Davis and the Lakers agreed to a three-year, $186 million max extension, the richest annual extension in NBA history at $62 million. Then there’s backup guard Austin Reaves, who inked a four-year, $53.83 million extension with the club.


Additionally, other offseason signings include center Jaxon Hayes (two-year, $4.62 million), forward Maxwell Lewis (four-year, $7.64 million), and rookie guard Jalen Hood-Schiano (four-year, $17.88 million).

The Lakers waived two-way forward Cole Swider and signed undrafted rookie wing Alex Fudge. Fudge joins former Gators teammate Colin Castleton and D’Moi Hodge in the two-way slots. Under the league’s new collective bargaining agreement, the maximum number of two-way players per team increased from two to three.

Furthermore, L.A. brass remains interested in signing free agent ex-Dallas Mavericks center Christian Wood. The Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat are still targeting the 6-foot-10 big man. However, the Bulls seem less likely to sign the seven-year veteran, considering the presence of Nikola Vucevic and Andre Drummond.

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