Former Los Angeles Lakers guard Patrick Beverley recalled when Darvin Ham — who served as Los Angeles’ head coach for two seasons — issued him an apology. The Lakers fired Ham after the team lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs and replaced him with J.J. Redick, who played 15 seasons in the NBA with six teams.
“I’m in Vegas — I’m gamblin’,” Beverley said when looking back on his interaction with Ham. “I see Coach Ham walk past. Mind you I ain’t seen Coach Ham on a personal level since I left Lakers. Coach Ham come up to me like, ‘What up?’ I don’t know his move. I’m just — ‘What up?’ He — ‘Could I get five minutes?’ I’m like, ‘Oh s—, okay. What up Ham?’ ‘Just wanna let you know, Pat, I apologize.’ Oh, s— — as a coach, you never supposed to apologize. The decision you make is the decision you make. Why? Because you the motherf—–‘ coach. ‘I apologize, Pat, you was right.’
“‘Need to practice mo’. F— that, we need to do mo’. Can’t just win off talent. Need to do mo’. F— that, we need to rep it. Gotta rep it. We don’t have any time to practice, our schedule — f— that, Coach. Film it. Rep it.’ There’s ways you can rep it. Walk through, everybody’s shoes untied. Nah, it wasn’t — he was he just — he had a lot on his plate. He was a first-year coach. You got Russ (Russell Westbrook). You got A.D. (Anthony Davis). You got Bron (LeBron James). There’s a lot goin’ on, fast. He ain’t going to listen to Pat Bev, not at that time. ‘Come on, Pat, you talkin’ yo s— again.’ ‘Nah, f— that, Coach, we confused. Don’t nobody know nothin. Rep it.’ And then fast forward, ‘You was right. If you don’t rep it, yo a– gon’ be out!'”
Beverley played in 45 games with the Lakers during the 2022-23 regular season before he was traded to the Orlando Magic in February of 2023.
In his single season as a member of the storied Lakers franchise, Beverley averaged 6.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 0.9 steals per contest. He also shot 40.2 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from deep during that span.
Around the time that the Lakers traded Beverley, the team seemed to be in jeopardy of missing out on the playoffs entirely. After all, Los Angeles owned a 25-31 record on the season after dropping a game to the Milwaukee Bucks on Feb. 9.
But Los Angeles ended the 2022-23 regular season on a high note sans Beverley on the roster. The Lakers ended their 82-game slate with a record above the .500 mark at 43-39 and squeaked into the playoffs as the Western Conference’s No. 7 seed after beating the Minnesota Timberwolves in the play-in tournament.
The storied franchise parlayed its strong play to finish out the regular season into the 2023 NBA Playoffs. The Lakers made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals after eliminating the Memphis Grizzlies — who were the No. 2 seed in the conference — in the first round and then beating the Golden State Warriors — who were fresh off a title — in the second round.
However, Los Angeles’ improbable playoff run came to an end at the hands of Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and company. The Nuggets swept the Lakers on their path to an NBA title.
While the Lakers’ 2022-23 campaign debatably wasn’t as successful as fans of the team hoped it would be, the team deserves credit for being able to shake off a slow start and reach the Western Conference Finals.
