Lakers could hire this fired coach as an assistant under Darvin Ham

The Los Angeles Lakers made a polarizing coaching decision during the 2022 offseason in firing Frank Vogel and replacing him with a rookie head coach in Darvin Ham. Vogel was two years removed from winning a championship and only had a bad season because of bigger factors (such as Russell Westbrook).

It didn’t start out great for Ham’s head-coaching career as the Lakers went 2-10 to start the season but it ended up working out nicely. Ham not only led a new-look Lakers roster to the playoffs but led the team much farther in the playoffs than anyone expected.

Meanwhile, a litany of NBA head coaches have been fired and it looks like the teams with head-coaching vacancies might play a bit of head coach roulette. One name on the market, though, should at least be considered for an assistant job with the Lakers.

Lakers could try to hire Mike Budenholzer as an assistant under Darvin Ham.

Just like with Vogel, Mike Budenholzer was fired two years after he won a championship with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks were shockingly eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs by the Miami Heat and that was the final straw for Bud.

Budenholzer is naturally going to be a name that is connected to the head coach openings and he would obviously take one of those jobs over being an assistant. That being said, just being a title-winning head coach will not land you a gig. Look at Vogel, who did not coach at all this past season (but had assistant offers).

It is not uncommon for experienced head coaches to take assistant jobs for the time being. If it is not beneath Mike D’Antoni to become an assistant coach then it is not beneath Budenholzer to become an assistant coach.

And if he were to go that route then the Lakers make the most sense. Ham was a long-time assistant under Budenholzer so it would reunite that pair as a coaching duo. Plus, it would give Budenholzer the chance to be an assistant on a contending team to once again raise his stock. It worked for Jason Kidd.

If we look even further down the line, there is potential for Giannis Antetokounmpo to join the Lakers. If this hire even makes it marginally more likely then it would be a move worth making for the purple and gold.

At the end of the day, any team that wants coach Bud to be its head coach is going to get first choice over an assistant job with the Lakers. But if no team wants him to be the head coach then being an assistant for the Lakers is the next best (and most likely) thing.