Lakers coach Darvin Ham is seemingly pissed off at Michael Malone for remarks during Denver’s title celebration: ‘This sh*t ain’t over’

You could say both Denver players and coaching staff enjoyed their title celebration a bit too much and probably said a couple of things they might regret. You could also say it’s understandable considering it was the Nuggets first-ever title for the franchise.

However, Lakers trainer Darvin Ham remembers everything rival coach Michael Malone said about them during his their championship run.

In this week’s episode of “#thisleague UNCUT” podcast with NBA reporters Marc Stein and Chris Haynes, Ham was asked to give his take on some of the new nicknames fans gave Malone, as he mostly delivered a warning, more than just his opinion.

“Oh, wow,” the coach said. “You’re gonna bring up Money Mike, man? The Lakers’ daddy? That’s what they call him now? The Lakers’ daddy? God bless his soul. This sh*t ain’t over. God bless his soul.”

Darvin Ham wants all the smoke 😤

(via @ChrisBHaynes, @TheSteinLine) pic.twitter.com/T5cafDyozP

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 13, 2023

It seems than this infamous nickname caught on ever since Vic Lombardi shouted it to the Denver fans during the celebration parade around the city. “He came into this world as the son of a coach, but in these playoffs, he became the Lakers daddy!” the Nuggets broadcaster said on Malone.

However, Ham has a lot of respect for the Denver club, as he believes all the other 29 teams in the NBA are looking up to them and know that they have a team that could dominate for years to come. In spite of this, the Lakers coach still thinks his team has what it takes to win the championship next season.

“I just think we gotta fight fire with fire. The big thing about Denver is you can’t turn the ball over, you have to finish at the rim, you gotta get to the free throw line and make free throws. But you can not have any, what we call self-inflicted wounds, you can’t beat yourself, they’re tough.

“We’ll see because their core is young. They’re set up to make a run for plenty more years,” he said.

The press insists that LeBron James will be using revenge on Malone as motivation for the upcoming campaign

It seems that Ham wasn’t the only member of the Lakers team that was pissed off after Malone’s behavior. The media has insisted that LeBron James has made it his personal agenda to have revenge on the Nuggets during next season, as it’s fueling his motivation to come back stronger on his 21st NBA season.

This is what the Lakers superstar supposedly responded to the Denver coach after he kept mentioning him during his team’s title celebration:

“In conversations with people…I can tell you that LeBron was very pissed with what Michael Malone said about him,” reporter Brandon Robinson said. “And from folks I have spoken with, that he is one of the many motivators going into this season.

Also, the conversation about him retiring was in the moment, and after playing the game and losing, he was very frustrated. But from folks that I have spoken with within the Lakers organization and those who know, they shared with me that you will see LeBron back in the fall and a very motivated LeBron going into the season. So Michael Malone is on his dartboard.”