UCLA superstar Lonzo Ball has been one of the most talked about players all season as he leads his team to the Sweet 16 this weekend. Ball has some impressive talent that has caught the eye of some current NBA players and analysts who expect him to be one of the top three picks in this year’s draft. He has also been getting a lot of attention for his dad LaVar, who has been a huge part of his sons, Ball has two younger brothers LiAngelo and LaMelo, success and is very outspoken about how good they are. Ball has made some outrageous claims about his sons, including that Lonzo is already better than reigning MVP Steph Curry.
It was his words about a different NBA star, LeBron James and how he handles his sons’, LeBron Jr. and Bryce, basketball careers. The boys are both too young to be compared to the Ball brothers, however LeBron Jr. already has verbal offers from both Kentucky and Duke. LaVar believes that he is setting up sons for greater success than James’ sons who are stuck in their father’s shadow. He went on Chris Broussard’s “In the Zone with Chris Broussard” podcast and said just that.
He told Broussard, “You got LeBron, it’s going to be hard for his kids because they are going to look at them like, ‘You got to be just like your dad.’ And after a while, that pressure starts sitting on you like, ‘Why do I got to be just like him? What can’t I just be me?’ And then they are going to be like, ‘Aw, you’re soft, you’re not that good.’ Because the expectation is very, very high.”
James did not take too kindly to Ball speaking out about his two sons. He was with the Cavaliers today at UCLA’s facility for practice and he told ESPN in response to LaVar’s comments, “Keep my kids’ name out of your mouth, keep my family out of your mouth”. He continued by saying, “This is dad to dad. It’s a problem now.” James said that Ball can talk about him, but not his family. It is no surprise that James took offense to the statement as he has always been very protective of his family. This is great for Ball who is looking to create as much buzz as possible about his sons.
