Like the Lakers, I am not Very High on Lonzo Ball

I've got a bunch of basketball stuff lined up for this week, and today, I'm going to start off with my take on the whole Lonzo Ball work out for the Lakers, and what has come out since then. Side note, I'll do a mock draft like I did for the NFL as we get closer to the NBA draft. First let's talk about Lonzo.  

About a week or so ago, Lonzo Ball had his solo workout for the Lakers. This has been very much talked about leading up to the draft in a few weeks. Apparently, the Lakers are the only team the Ball family said he would work out for. In fact, the ever annoying Lavar Ball has come out recently and said he wants all of his sons to go to UCLA for one year, leave and get drafted by the Lakers. This dude is out of his god damn mind. All three kids will not be that good. It's the law of averages. Anyway, there was some talk that Ball may work out for the 76ers, but that died pretty quickly the closer we got to the Lakers workout.

Lonzo had his workout, and at first, all seemed well. He went by himself, no Lavar around, to his workout, dinner and interview. I don't remember who exactly it was, either Uproxx Sports or the AV Club, possibly maybe even Deadspin, but they headlined this news by comparing Lonzo Ball to a sixth grader who says stuff like, "I did this all by myself". I found that very funny. But, as I dug a little deeper on these stories, I found out some interesting news.

First off, the Lakers and Luke Walton said that they did not want Lavar Ball anywhere near his workout and the Lakers facility. This was the exact right decision the powers that be made. Lavar Ball is a cancer, and his son is going into the adult world of professional basketball, and he should not be allowed anywhere near his possible future employer. My father never came by the lab I worked in and talked about my greatness as a dental lab technician. This I am very grateful for.

By all accounts the dinner went well. How could it not? This is a dinner where the prospective prospect talks about how great they are and tells the franchise that is taking him out how much he wants to play for that team. These dinners and interviews are designed to be easy and fun for all parties involved. It helps the franchise get to know the prospect, and the prospect gets to know the franchise. It is all good. But, it had to be stated again by everyone involved that Lavar Ball was not allowed to be a part of this.

The fact that everyone has to keep saying that Lavar is not welcome is a big red flag for me. It's like when someone keeps saying that everything is great, but nothing is really great. These people have to keep saying Lavar is not around, but maybe he is there some way, some how. Maybe he is texting his son constantly throughout the whole meal and interview, telling him what to demand and what to say. Lavar Ball is trying every possible way to stay involved because he does not look at his son as his child, but as a money maker. That is pretty awful.

Then, this weekend and today, news came out that the Lakers were "not blown away" by Ball's workout. First off, this is nonsense. The Lakers are going to draft Ball, unless the Celtics, or whoever gets the first pick, passes on Markelle Fultz, then the Lakers will take him. That won't happen, and I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that Ball is going second to the Lakers unless something really crazy happens prior to, or on draft night. Whenever a team talks about a prospect while they are still in college, and it is made known that they want to draft that position, they will take that kid, unless they get hurt. It happens 99.9 percent of the time.

So no, I do not buy the talk coming from everyone in Laker land saying that they weren't blown away. It is all a smoke screen to see if someone gives them a crazy offer for the second pick that immediately makes the Lakers relevant again. I do not see that happening. I don't think any of the teams in the lottery will do that. I think Ball would be a great fit in Phoenix, but they do not have anyone that will immediately turn the Lakers into a playoff team. The 76ers already have a point guard. The Kings want DeAaron Fox, who completely outplayed Ball in the tournament. The Celtics are either taking Fultz or trading the pick for an established star. Everyone else in the lottery seems set with where they are. so no, I do not see the Lakers pulling off some big time deal, and passing up on Ball.

Then today, or maybe yesterday, dumbass Lavar Ball had to open his mouth again and say that "the Lakers are starving for a leader". I do not think Lonzo Ball is any type of leader. He is still a teenager for one. Second, I already mentioned him getting outplayed by Fox in a big time game. Ball quit halfway through the second half of that game. That is not a leader. Third, his shot is trash. There is no way he can take over a game if he has to be the primary scorer. Fourth, the Lakers have players like D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson that have been there for at least 2 years, so they know the system and they know the players on the team. Fifth, no rookie since LeBron has come in and been the leader immediately. Lonzo Ball is no LeBron. Not in a million years.

I think Ball is going to be a bust. I think his ceiling is being the 7th or 8th guy off the bench for a fringe playoff team. All this talk recently, the way he finished his college season and his "poor" workout have me very skeptical of him being a good professional basketball player. He does have good court vision, and he is a tall point guard, but when he has to go against the Russell Westbrook's, Kawhi Leonard's, Kyrie Irving's, Steph Curry's and Chris Paul's of the world, he is going to get torched. Lonzo Ball is going to be a Ryan Leaf level bust in the pros, and it will make me so happy to see Lavar Ball fade into his much needed obscurity after that happens. That is my prediction on Lonzo Ball's NBA career.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet. 

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