For months, the Los Angeles Lakers have been at the center of a transformation—one that has fans, analysts, and even the ever-opinionated Stephen A. Smith taking notice. With JJ Redick now at the helm, the team is embracing a new identity, one that starkly contrasts with the tenure of former head coach Darvin Ham. While Ham had his strengths, his Lakers never quite reached the heights many had hoped for. But now, under Redick, something is different. Even Smith, known for his fiery takes, has found himself offering rare words of approval—though not without an unexpected confession about Ham’s time in charge.
“They elite offensively- particularly with this 18 game stretch; 11 of those have been without Anthony Davis. Offensively, they top two in the league in terms of 50% efficiency and all those. Defensively, they’re number 1 during this stretch… Now we’re seeing the Lakers come along defensively in a very very impressive fashion. And if that continues, oh- there’s no telling what they could do in the West,” said SAS on First Take. But amidst the praise for Redick was a low-key confession regarding Darvin Ham’s Lakers.
“We saw the difference when JJ first arrived. It was an upgrade on Darvin Ham offensively, but downgrade defensively ‘cause Darvin Ham specialised in that,” added SAS in the same analysis. This might seem like a snarky dig at Redick, but upon further reading, it does seem more like he’s putting Ham’s coaching philosophy under the microscope.
Oct 26, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3) speaks with head coach Darvin Ham during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
After the departure of Frank Vogel, Ham was tipped to win then their next championship in double quick time. I don’t think they were necessarily disastrous, but their star-studded squad couldn’t shine under Ham’s unconventional style of play. Despite having the likes of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook in their 5, they have a -191 differential (approx) when it comes to the points they scored to points they conceded in Ham’s 2 seasons.
Maybe it wasn’t the right idea to play as defensive as they did under his tenure, or it might’ve been the players’ inability to adapt to his philosophy. No one can say for sure, but Redick’s aggressive and offensive approach to the game seems to be suiting them a lot more considering they’re now 4th in the West.
Stephen A. Smith calls out LeBron James’ ‘egregious’ decision
During the time Darvin Ham was in the running to be sacked by the Lakers, they were looking at the most viable options to take the team forward. Whether it was a coincidence that the man ended up being LeBron’s podcast buddy JJ Redick is arbitrary. But does SAS think the same way? Absolutely not.
“You’re wearing the Lakers uniform, you are a player, you know your coach is on the hot seat, and deciding to do a podcast about games- about basketball with specifics in mind, schemes, and how you coach, and how you draw plays up, and what you should you be doing, how you strategise, etc. etc. while your coach is on a hot seat and you knew the Lakers would more than likely be looking for a coach next season is one of the most egregious things we have seen a basketball player do to a coach. That is a fact,” says SAS during an episode of First Take.
LeBron allegedly has a say in the team’s operations and management, including the acquisition of Russell Westbrook. Smith thinks this has had significant repercussions on the team’s flexibility and performance, saying he has helped ‘derail’ the franchise. His comments on the ‘betrayal’ of Darvin Ham took place when Redick was still just the frontrunner for the gig, which allowed him to set the narrative he ended up setting.
so this means “LeBron & his camp” brought a COTY candidate to the Lakers organization right? @stephenasmith don’t hear him or anybody else giving “LeBron & his camp” credit now that the hire seems to be working out. funny how that works https://t.co/0Wk9ZaMQiQ pic.twitter.com/tbY1XE1qbK
— ♕𝕕𝕒𝕧𝕠𓅓 (@shpillo_) February 24, 2025
Whether the King was the ‘sole cause’ of all the noise created for JJ Redick to take the pilot’s seat for the Lakers’ journey to success or not, it doesn’t take away the fantastic job he’s done for the team. The addition of Luka Doncic to the mix has them tipped for the championship in the foreseeable future- and hopefully, that happens before Bron retires for the sake of the Lakers fans.
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