Darvin Ham Blamed by Twitter for Lakers Loss to Ja Morant, Grizzlies Without LeBron
The Los Angeles Lakers are in for a tough stretch without star forward LeBron James, who is set to miss an extended period with a foot injury. If Tuesday's game against the Memphis Grizzlies was any indication, the Lakers will face hardships on both sides of the ball during James' absence.
Los Angeles fought hard in the first half but quickly ran out of steam, falling 121-109 to Memphis at FedEx Forum. The Lakers surrendered 47 points in the third quarter alone, 28 of which were by Grizzlies star Ja Morant on his way to a triple-double of 39 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Morant's scoring eruption set a new franchise record for points in a single quarter.
The Lakers held a three-point lead at halftime thanks to a spirited defensive effort led by Anthony Davis, who had an outstanding performance with 28 points and 19 rebounds. However, the Grizzlies made adjustments out of the break to unleash Morant, whereas the Lakers didn't switch up their game plan.
Because of this, fans on Twitter were unhappy with Los Angeles head coach Darvin Ham, with some even calling him to be fired after just one year on the job:
If the Lakers want to be successful while James is sidelined, they will need to commit to a stout defensive effort for a full 48 minutes. Ham was expected to improve the team's defense when he was hired to replace Frank Vogel, but Tuesday's showing was not his best performance.
Ham will need to do a better job of putting his players in position to succeed against elite teams in the Western Conference. Time is running out on the Lakers' hopes to climb up the standings to a spot in the postseason.
Los Angeles (29-33) will look to get back on track on Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder (28-32).
