Darvin Ham is best known for his dunking ability. At Texas Tech he broke a backboard in the NCAA Tournament. In the NBA he was nicknamed Ham Slamwhich while being a role player on several teams including the NBA champion Detroit Pistons in 2004. After an eight-year NBA career, Ham got into coaching.

Ham worked his way up the ladder with the Lakers, then the Atlanta Hawks and is now the lead assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks who start the NBA Finals tonight against the Pheonix Suns.

Ham won't be at the Bucks much longer though, after being the only other serious name considered for the open Texas Tech job which went to Mark Adams, Ham returned to the Bucks with the intention of becoming a head coach in the NBA.

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That's not a new dream for Ham. He's been a head coaching candidate for several seasons now. Just this offseason he's been listed as a finalist for several jobs, most recently the Washington Wizards.

If it isn't the Wizards this season, Ham will soon find himself leading a bench in the NBA. It's inevitable. Ham has developed a reputation as one of the best assistants in the NBA. NBCsports.com had this to say about Ham's ability, "Ham has a strong reputation as a former NBA player — an eight-year NBA veteran, and won a ring with the 2004 Pistons — who understands how to get a message through to a player without damaging an ego. That’s a huge skill for a coach in today’s NBA. Ham has the reputation of being hard-nosed and with a great work ethic, and he has spent more than a decade on NBA benches."

That's high praise for a guy who's been passed over several times. Maybe the Wizards are the team to finally take the plunge and give Ham the head coaching shot he absolutely deserves. Until then, Ham will be trying to win his first championship as a coach, and his second in the NBA.

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