LaVar Ball is not afraid to say things that cause controversy. He said that his oldest son Lonzo is better than two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry when his son was still at UCLA and that he could beat Michael Jordan in a one-on-one game. Ball continues to say controversial things as he said that his middle son LiAngelo is better than Naismith winner Zion Williamson, according to TMZ.
His statement is controversial as the middle Ball went undrafted in the 2018 NBA Draft and was not signed to a summer league roster. He dominated the JBA as he scored 349 points in seven games. Ball was productive in Lithuania, too, scoring 12.6 points per game and shot 41.5 percent from behind the arc, but the competition in the league is much lower than what Williamson faced at Duke.
Williamson is not a great perimeter shooter, but the South Carolina native dominated college basketball in his freshman season. He averaged 26 points per game on 61.6 percent shooting in the NCAA Tournament, including 7-17 from behind the arc. While he was unable to lead Duke to a national title, Williamson was the best player in college basketball and will most likely be the top pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
Here is what LaVar had to say:
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The middle Ball brother may have improved his game since the 2018 NBA Draft, but his dad took it a step further by saying that he would be the first pick in the 2019 NBA Draft if he was eligible.
“Biggest and the strongest 2-guard in the NBA right now,” Ball said of his son LiAngelo. While Gelo does have the size at 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds to create a mismatch on the perimeter, his lack of explosiveness will be his downfall in the NBA.
Ball was not asked to play defense in high school and he normally defended big guys when he played at Chino Hills. His lack of lateral quickness and footspeed will make him a liability on defense, making it hard for teams to trust him on that side of the ball. Williamson, on the other hand, has shown the ability to defend all five positions on the floor and could create an impact on the defensive end very early in his NBA career.
The elderly Ball said that his oldest son would be the next Magic Johnson, but he has struggled during his time with the Los Angeles Lakers. Ball is shooting 43.7 percent from the free throw line in his two NBA seasons and has only played 99 games in two seasons. The middle Ball brother could turn into a solid NBA player and will be looking to make a summer league roster after the 2019 NBA Draft.