Did Darvin Ham cost LeBron James his last real chance at another NBA title?

The even-keeled Michigan native, who was sacked as the Lakers' head coach on Friday, was hired for his ability to manage personalities. Once he lost his players' trust, it was only a matter of

The date is 31 January, less than two months removed from the Los Angeles Lakers' inaugural NBA Cup championship, and the Lakers are nosediving precipitously, racking up loss after loss in late December and into January. In a competitive Western Conference, being sub-.500, even by a game or two, simply will not get the job done for a championship hopeful. And the team does have a right to be among those hopefuls, buoyed by a shockingly healthy tandem of a freshly-39-year-old LeBron James and injury-prone big man Anthony Davis, who, to this point, have missed a combined eight games and are playing at an All-NBA level. But something clearly isn't working, and time is of the essence. No one knows this better than foe of father time himself, LeBron: that night, after yet another demoralizing loss, he tweets out, simply, an hourglass. A single emoji has never loomed larger.

At the time, there is frantic speculation in regards to what, or to whom, the primitive timepiece is referring. Is it James' underperforming supporting cast, with the trade deadline hovering in the immediate future? Is it the Lakers' front office, who are no doubt aware of his player option looming in the coming offseason? Is it his own NBA mortality, to which he has admitted he will likely succumb sooner rather than later, despite no significant drop-off in production?