UCLA basketball star Lonzo Ball is sure to be a top-five pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, but his dad is making headlines for his wild comments.
UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball is one of the elite freshmen in the country, and his dad wants to make sure we all know it. LaVar Ball has been campaigning for his son’s NBA career since he was in high school and it’s starting to get out of hand.
LaVar said in an interview on the Kevin and Mike Show on KCUB 1290-AM in Arizona that his son would “only play for the [Los Angeles] Lakers.”
Less than 24 hours later, LaVar did the classic backpedal and explained to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman that he was taken out of context.
“All I said was that my boy is going to play for the Lakers, and I’m going to speak it into existence,” LaVar told ESPN on Saturday night. “I want him to be a Laker, but I wasn’t saying he’s only going to play for the Lakers. I’m not trying to say he won’t play for a different team. But I’d like him to play for the Lakers because it’s home and I’d love him to learn from Magic (Johnson) He’s the best guard ever to me, and nobody better for Lonzo to learn from than Magic Johnson.”
It’s not the first time that LaVar had said something completely outlandish when it came to his son.
He made headlines when he told the Pac 12 Network that his 19-year-old son was better than reigning back-to-back MVP Stephen Curry.
Ball talked about his Curry comments during his radio interview.
Via Bleacher Report:
I have my opinion of my son and I watch people play. I said he’s better than (Curry) … to me! That don’t have to be for everybody else. But to me I think my son is better than (Curry) and I don’t care what nobody says. I’m saying he’s taller, faster, stronger. …
Put him in the right situation. (Curry) shoots the ball. Lonzo shoots the ball. He dribbles the ball. Lonzo dribbles the ball. Like I said, he’s going to have problems if he tries to go against my son one-on-one, but it’s a team game. I don’t know why everybody gets mad for. What I’m not going to say is Lonzo is pretty good but he’s no (Curry). Stop it. (Curry) is pretty good but he’s no Lonzo Ball.
Lonzo has returned UCLA to glory, and after a win on Saturday against the Arizona Wildcats the Bruins moved to 26-3 on the season. DraftExpress has Ball pegged to go second overall in the 2017 NBA draft.
He’ll be one of the most watched rookies in the league next year. The pressure is on after comments like this from his dad.