Ben Wallace says Darvin Ham is a ‘great locker room guy’ who Lakers players will rally around

Darvin Ham has had his hands full ever since accepting the head coaching job of the Los Angeles Lakers a few months ago.

His former teammate Ben Wallace seems to believe that Ham is the right man to lead the Lakers.

TMZ Sports recently spoke with the Hall of Famer. When asked if he thinks Ham will turn the Lakers in the right direction, Wallace answered in the affirmative.

“I think so,” said Wallace. “Knowing Darvin, I know he’s a great locker room guy, and I think the guys are really gonna rally around him, and I think his message is gonna be on point for that team. I think it’s just a matter of them buying into system and just going out there and play basketball. You can look at the team and tell they built to win.”

Last season was a disaster for L.A. After the Lakers added Russell Westbrook to form a star trio with him, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the team never found its rhythm during the season. It finished with a lowly 33-49 record, good for just 11th in the Western Conference.

As L.A.’s season was coming to an end, many around the league were expecting the Lakers to shake up their coaching staff and roster in the offseason. While the organization did fire former head coach Frank Vogel, it has so far held onto Westbrook.

Interestingly, it seems that the Lakers can get rid of Westbrook and gain a couple of key rotation players in the process if they send unprotected draft picks to the Indiana Pacers. However, no blockbuster trade has come together yet.

It seems like Ham is determined to make the current roster work.

Lakers fans are hoping that Ham can make maximize the current roster. After all, it is appearing more likely that there won’t be any huge changes made to the squad before the regular season begins.

The 49-year-old coach is no stranger to working with former and current All-Stars. As a player, he was teammates with Wallace on the Detroit Pistons for two seasons. Together, they won the 2004 NBA title. Incidentally, the Pistons beat the Lakers in that year’s NBA Finals.

Ham also won a championship as an assistant coach for the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Milwaukee Bucks in the 2020-21 campaign. Hopefully, his championship pedigree gives the Lakers a boost this season.