Darvin Ham joining Bucks as lead assistant coach, per source: Why the reunion makes sense

By Eric Nehm, Jovan Buha and Lukas Weese

The Milwaukee Bucks are adding Darvin Ham as the lead assistant coach on Doc Rivers’ staff, a team source confirmed Monday. Ham is returning to where he developed his reputation as one of the game’s best assistants from 2018 to 2022. During Ham’s first stint with the Bucks, the team won an NBA championship in 2021, the franchise’s second title and its first since 1971.

ESPN was the first to report the news of Ham joining Milwaukee.

Ham, 50, spent the last two seasons as the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers fired him on May 3, after they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets.

Rumors over Ham’s potential firing intensified deep into the Lakers’ season and seemed inevitable when they won only one game in their best-of-seven playoff series against the Nuggets. The lowest moment came for the Lakers when they blew a 20-point second-half lead in Game 2 of the series.

During Ham’s two-year tenure, the Lakers went 90-74 in the regular season and 9-12 in the postseason.

Ham was also an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks from 2013 to 2018 after playing in the NBA from 1996 to 2005. He won an NBA championship coming off the bench for the Detroit Pistons in 2004.

The Bucks finished 49-33 during the 2023-24 season. Milwaukee lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Indiana Pacers in six games. Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two-time NBA MVP, was sidelined for the entire Pacers series with a calf injury.

The Bucks have made the playoffs in each of the last eight seasons, with the highlight being that 2021 championship year when Ham was the lead assistant coach on Mike Budenholzer’s staff. Ham was beloved by players during his time as an assistant under Budenholzer.

Players appreciated Ham’s outgoing personality but noted that he was unafraid to have tough conversations or let players hear about it when they weren’t playing up to the coaching staff’s standards.

During his tenure in Los Angeles, Ham also spoke fondly of his time in Milwaukee and maintained his relationships with Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton.

After turning down the opportunity to reunite with Budenholzer, his mentor, in Phoenix earlier this offseason, Ham now has a chance to grow under another decorated head coach in Rivers. More importantly, the Bucks job offers Ham a chance to rebuild his reputation in hopes of landing another head-coaching opportunity.

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(Photo: Matthew Stockman / Getty Images)

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