LaVar Ball is approaching his third NBA draft, and by that we mean his third son is approaching the NBA draft.
The elder Ball got everything he wanted when Lonzo Ball was selected second overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2017 draft. He got nothing he wanted when LiAngelo Ball entered the 2018 draft and exited without hearing his name called.
With LaMelo Ball now among the top prospects of the 2020 draft, LaVar is again trying to plot out his son’s future. And it takes him to some interesting places.
LaVar Ball wants LaMelo to be a Knick or a Piston
LaVar Ball either wants LaMelo to fall hard in the draft or a team to make a big trade. (Photo by Cassy Athena/Getty Images)
So does LaVar Ball want LaMelo to be taken first overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves and form an exciting core with Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell? Nope. Does he want to see his youngest son join an obvious contender with the Golden State Warriors? Negatory.
How about landing with the Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers or Atlanta Hawks, teams with varying degrees of future excitement? None of the above.
No, LaVar Ball wants his son playing for the New York Knicks or Detroit Pistons, as captured in this clip from The Pascal Show on YouTube:
“I want him in either New York or Detroit,” Ball said.
When asked why he didn’t want LaMelo in Los Angeles like his brother at the start of his career, LaVar made clear he still had no love for Luke Walton, nor much interest in a post-LeBron James and Anthony Davis team.
“The makeup that they have right now, that’s not good for me,” Ball said. “When they finish with the AD and LeBron here and all that. Check this out, already had a son in LA with a raggedy ass coach. So it don’t matter where you go, the key is to have the right coach behind you.”
Judging from that last sentence, Ball is apparently a big fan of Pistons coach Dwane Casey and Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau. LeMelo has also been training in Detroit for the draft.
The Pistons currently hold the seventh overall pick in the draft, while the Knicks sit at eighth overall. It is unlikely Ball falls that far, but trades could always change the situation. Yahoo Sports’ Krysten Peek had him going first overall to Minnesota in her latest mock draft.
Of course, LaVar Ball’s happiness is likely quite low on either team’s list of priorities.
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