LeBron James has played for nine coaches with seven being fired during his 21-year long NBA career.

The Los Angeles Lakers have fired Darvin Ham, making him the seventh head coach to be fired out of the nine coaches that LeBron James has had in his 21-year NBA career.

James is one of the greatest players of all time, and there are heavy expectations on all his coaches when finding a winning formula around him. While Darvin Ham is the latest to fail under expectations, some excellent coaches have found winning formulas around The King.

Erik Spoelstra and Frank Vogel are two names that have won a combined three NBA titles with LeBron on the roster, and we have collected the names of all the coaches James has had over his illustrious career.

Paul Silas (2003-2005)

NBA Championships: 0

NBA Finals Appearances: 0

Regular-Season Record: 66-75

Playoff Record: 0-0

As head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2003 to 2005, Paul Silas undertook the difficult task of mentoring 18-year-old rookie LeBron James, who was embarking on his journey as a professional player. The Cavaliers were not expected to be very good with LeBron needing some time to find his footing as a superstar, and that shows with Silas’ record.

Amidst the turmoil, a change in ownership occurred, with Dan Gilbert assuming control of the team. It was under Gilbert’s ownership that Silas was relieved of his duties in the middle of the season, a decision made with the Cavaliers holding a respectable 34–30 record and occupying the fifth position in the Eastern Conference standings. However, Silas wasn’t the right man to lead LeBron going forward.

Brendan Malone (2005)

NBA Championships: 0

NBA Finals Appearances: 0

Regular Season Record: 8-10

Playoff Record: 0-0

After the dismissal of Paul Silas, the Cleveland Cavaliers turned to interim head coach Michael Malone, the father of current Nuggets head coach, Michael Malone. In his brief tenure, Malone guided the team through the final 18 games of the season, culminating in an 8-10 record. Despite their efforts, the Cavaliers fell short of playoff qualification, finishing with a 42-40 record.

Mike Brown (2005-2010)

NBA Championships: 0

NBA Finals Appearances: 1

Regular Season Record: 265-124

Playoff Record: 42-29

Mike Brown assumed the role of head coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers, succeeding Brendan Malone in 2005. Brown became the league’s second-youngest coach behind Lawrence Frank at the time. Upon his arrival, the Cavaliers were striving to reverse their postseason absence, having missed the playoffs in LeBron James’s initial two NBA seasons. Under Brown’s stewardship, the team achieved a notable turnaround, clinching 50 victories and securing a playoff berth in the 2005–06 season, winning their first-round series but losing against the Detroit Pistons in seven games in the second round.

The key moment of Brown and James’ relationship came in the 2007 season when the Cavaliers triumphed over the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference finals, boosting them to the NBA Finals. However, their championship aspirations were swiftly dashed as they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs.

The apex of Brown’s tenure with the Cavaliers came in 2009 when he was honored as the NBA Coach of the Year, a testament to his stewardship as the team amassed a league-best 66–16 record. Despite consistently impressive regular-season performances, including another league-leading 61-win campaign in 2009–10, Brown’s tenure concluded abruptly. Following a disappointing exit from the Eastern Conference semifinals at the hands of the Boston Celtics on May 13, 2010, Brown was fired for not winning an NBA title with James.

Erik Spoelstra (2010-2014)

NBA Championships: 2

NBA Finals Appearances: 4

Regular Season Record: 215-79

Playoff Record: 59-28

After Erik Spoelstra was named the successor to legendary coach Pat Riley (who stepped down), the young coach was thrust into a difficult position once LeBron James and Chris Bosh came to the Miami Heat in free agency. However, the start of the 2010–11 season was marred by a rocky 9–8 record, leading to reported frustrations among players directed towards head coach Erik Spoelstra. Some players expressed concerns about the intensity of practices, and tensions peaked when LeBron James visibly bumped into Spoelstra during a timeout, fueling speculation about Spoelstra’s future.

Despite these challenges, Spoelstra’s leadership proved resilient as the team rallied to secure a playoff berth and finished with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference. The Heat’s resurgence culminated in an appearance in the 2011 NBA Finals, albeit ending in defeat to the Dallas Mavericks in six games. Despite the concerns about Spoelstra’s ability to lead, Pat Riley believed that he would be the best coach for LeBron James and company and he would return the following year. That proved to be the correct move.

The following seasons saw Spoelstra guide the Heat to back-to-back championship runs. In the 2011–12 season, the Heat overcame adversity, including injuries to key players like Chris Bosh, to secure the NBA title by defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games. LeBron James won his first NBA title and Finals MVP, finally becoming an NBA champion. The Heat would win a championship in the following season, with LeBron winning his second-straight championship and Finals MVP trophy after defeating the San Antonio Spurs.

Following the Heat’s Finals loss in 2014, marking their fourth-straight appearance, LeBron James decided to take his talents back to Cleveland and he bid goodbye to a very successful four years under talented head coach Erik Spoelstra.

David Blatt (2014-2016)

NBA Championships: 0

NBA Finals Appearances: 1

Regular Season Record: 80-29

Playoff Record: 14-6

David Blatt assumed the helm as head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, rather surprisingly. His appointment came hot on the heels of being crowned the EuroLeague Coach of the Year and went on to win Eastern Conference Coach of the Month in April 2015. Under his guidance, the Cavaliers surged to the top of the Eastern Conference, showcasing their dominance in various statistical categories and notching an impressive 53–29 record for the season.

Still, there were concerns about Blatt’s ability to keep his players in line, including LeBron James, who many felt was the true coach of the team. Regardless of those rumors, Blatt would have an incredible accomplishment with James as his player in the 2015 season. The pinnacle of Blatt’s coaching tenure with the Cavaliers came when he and his counterpart, Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors, made history as the first pair of rookie NBA coaches to face off in the NBA Finals since the league’s inception in 1947. Although the Cavaliers fell short against the Warriors in a hard-fought series, Blatt’s impact on the team’s success was undeniable.