Category: LiAngelo Ball

Report: LiAngelo Ball inks G League deal with Oklahoma City Blue

After a report earlier in the week of a G League contract being extended to LiAngelo Ball, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported on Saturday that the middle Ball brother would be staying with the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s G League affiliate.

After a report earlier in the week of a G League contract being extended to LiAngelo Ball, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported on Saturday that the middle Ball brother would be staying with the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s G League affiliate.

Ball began working out with the Blue as a practice player in late December. After what essentially amounted to a two-month trial with the team, Ball was offered a contract for his first stint in the G League.

The Blue are 20-20 this season. Aside from brief appearances from players on assignment from the Thunder, the leading scorer for OKC this year is DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell out of Illinois State at 17.8 points per game.

On the season, the Blue average 38.7 three-point attempts per game, the sixth-most in the G League and fitting perfectly into Ball’s skillset.

The Blue have 10 more games this season, starting on Sunday against the Austin Spurs. The game can be found on the G League’s Twitch channel. The Blue are also scheduled to make a stop in Los Angeles before season’s end as they’ll play the South Bay Lakers on Saturday, March 21. The following day, the Blue play the Agua Caliente Clippers.

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Report: LiAngelo Ball set to sign official NBA G League contract

After practicing with the Oklahoma City Thunder G League team for over two months, LiAngelo Ball is set to take the next step and sign a G League contract.

After practicing with the Oklahoma City Thunder G League team for over two months, LiAngelo Ball is set to take the next step and sign a G League contract.

On Tuesday, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that Ball had been offered a contract by the G League. Ball began practicing with the Oklahoma City Blue at the end of December and has been with the Thunder’s affiliate in the two months since.

While it is unclear if Ball will continue with the Blue, it is certain that he will get his best chance at auditioning for NBA teams. The G League season runs through the end of March meaning Ball will have the better part of a month to prove he belongs in the G League.

This also opens the door for Ball to be able to sign with a Summer League team to compete in Las Vegas in July. By getting his foot in the door, especially the manner in which he did it, Ball will draw some interest from teams eager to see him compete at higher and higher levels.

Credit goes to Ball for earning his contract as well. By joining on with a practice squad and earning his way into a contract, Ball has proven something even if it is just that he belongs in the G League for now. For someone who has had his injury problems and missteps along the way, it’s a positive sign to see him latch on with a G League side.

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Lonzo Ball on Kobe Bryant: ‘He was our generation’s Michael Jordan’

After defeating the Celtics on Sunday, Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball offered his thoughts on the loss of NBA and Laker legend Kobe Bryant.

A stoic Lonzo Ball sat in his locker after Sunday’s win by the Pelicans over the Celtics. Under normal circumstances, Ball and his teammates would be elated for a win over an Eastern Conference contender as they look to save their own playoff contention.

But Sunday was far from normal.

Hours before tip-off, news broke of Kobe Bryant’s passing in a helicopter crash that also took the life of daughter Gianna and seven others. Forced to play the game at hand against the Boston Celtics, Ball and the players found ways to honor the NBA legend whether through messages on shoes or honorary shot-clock violations.

Afterward, Ball, a California native that spent multiple seasons as a Laker, spoke to a swarm of reporters about Bryant’s impact on Los Angeles.

“Not even LA, I think just globally in general, I mean he was my generation’s Michael Jordan, if you think about it. He’s the closest thing that we’ve seen to it. Everybody my age and around my age all watched him growing up. He was an influence on everybody’s life. Like I said, we lost a legend today.”

Ball said he was happy about an important win but still overall saddened by the events of the day. When asked about why Bryant was such an influential character, he found himself at a loss for words.

“I think the stuff he did on the court and off the court. He’s, obviously, one of the hardest workers the game’s ever seen, one of the greatest players the game’s ever seen. He’s also a great father. I really don’t know what to say. It was hard for me to play today.”

Once deemed the savior of Los Angeles basketball, Ball never formally met Bryant until his rookie season. But like so many others not in Los Angeles, his impact was felt long before the face-to-face meeting.

“But growing up, he was on the TV all the time. Everybody wants to be Kobe. Shooting shots into the trashcan when you’re a little kid in school, yelling ‘Kobe.’ His influence on everybody is tremendous.”

While Ball shared his reaction in front of cameras, the reaction of his brother’s was shared on social media. LaMelo shared a heartfelt video on Instagram late Sunday night while LiAngelo also took to Instagram to share his disbelief.

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WATCH: LaMelo Ball shares heartfelt tribute video to Kobe Bryant

In the wake of the passing of Kobe and Gianna Bryant on Sunday, LaMelo Ball shared a tribute video on his Instagram.

For a generation of NBA players, Kobe Bryant was to them what Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson were to the generations before. For those that grew up in California, he was an idol, a symbol of basketball dominance.

As Chino Hills natives, the Ball brothers grew up during the prime of Kobe Bryant’s career. It should come as no surprise, then, that the brothers were as rocked by Sunday’s passing of Bryant in a helicopter crash – along with daughter Gianna and seven others – as everyone else.

Lonzo Ball offered his tribute by writing messages on his shoes for the Pelicans’ game against Boston. At the start of Sunday’s game, both the Pelicans and Celtics honored Bryant by taking 24-second shot clock violations in honor of Bryant’s jersey, No. 24.

LaMelo, whose season with the Illawarra Hawks is over, took to Twitter Sunday afternoon to share his thoughts after finding out of his passing.

After having time to process the matter, Ball would later share a more heartfelt video on Instagram late Sunday night/early Monday morning.

LiAngelo, who is currently with the OKC Blue as a practice player in the G League, shared his reaction on his Instagram story.

Photo via LiAngelo Ball/Instagram

Like most of us, the Ball brothers all found the news shocking and saddening as the NBA lost a true icon and legend on Sunday.

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LaVar Ball reveals dream plan of his three sons on Knicks coached by Mark Jackson

LaVar Ball revealed his dream scenario of his three sons landing on the New York Knicks while being coached by Mark Jackson.

LaVar Ball found his way back in front of a camera and back into the news cycle on Tuesday. The original Big Baller sat down with TMZ alongside Metta World Peace and Master P for a roundtable conversation.

While much of the conversation centered around all being African American fathers and fathers of up-and-coming basketball players, Ball still found his way into making an outlandish remark or two.

The end of the conversation veered toward Lonzo Ball’s current role with the Pelicans and current NBA discussions. After World Peace brought up Mark Jackson as a potential coach for the New York Knicks, Ball had the following to say:

“He’d be perfect for New York. He’d be perfect. You know why I say that? Because he from New York, he’s a point guard. Please pick my son first (in the draft). If he’s over there and getting my other two sons with Mark Jackson, he’s going to do the same thing he did in Golden State with my boys.”

There’s a lot to unpack. First, this would make the third or possibly fourth team Ball has dreamt that his sons would play on, starting with the Lakers before shifting to the Phoenix Suns and then the New Orleans Pelicans. Dreams can be hard to determine their true meaning of but maybe Ball is missing the, well, ball on his dreams.

The Knicks are a viable landing spot for LaMelo as they are currently tied for third in the draft lottery. Though it was recently revealed they never made the trip to Australia to scout Ball, the Knicks will have ample time to scout and work out Ball in the weeks leading up to the draft.

But as for the rest of the Ball family landing in New York, the logistics don’t need to be detailed once again. LiAngelo currently spends his time as a G League practice player for the Oklahoma City Blue. That is the highest level he has reached in his professional career.

Lonzo, meanwhile, is under contract with the Pelicans until at least the 2021-22 season, and that’s only if he turns down restricted free agency and accepted a one-year qualifying offer before entering unrestricted free agency.

Jackson has his own faults as well. While some, like LaVar, credit him for laying the groundwork of the Warriors’ franchise, it’s also worth noting that his departure nearly solely led to Golden State embarking on one of the greatest runs in league history over a multiple season span.

It’s all a very silly plan that is unlikely at best, which is about as far as LaVar’s plans go.

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LaMelo, LiAngelo Ball listed among top high school performances of decade

Both LaMelo and LiAngelo Ball found themselves on the list of highest-scoring high school performances of the decade.

While the Ball family has long become household names across the country and globe, the early days of their rise were as fascinating as they were unexpected. After breaking onto the scene as a set of brothers dominating the competition. LaMelo and LiAngelo were left in the spotlight at Chino Hills with Lonzo taking his skills to the next level at UCLA.

Chino Hills’ style lent itself to wild stat lines and the Ball brothers were willing participants in exploiting that style. The result was eye-popping scoring outputs from each Ball brother.

MaxPreps released the top scoring outputs for both single-game, single-season and career for the last decade. LaMelo topped the list with his 92-point performance while LiAngelo had a spot in the top 10 with his 72-point outburst.

Looking back, the box scores of those performances are just as absurd now as they were then. In LaMelo’s game, he finished 37-of-61 from the field, including game 7-of-22 from three. He scored 41 points in the fourth quarter and did dish out seven assists.

LiAngelo’s 72-point outing, meanwhile, was a school record at the time and came one night after he exploded for 56 points.

Both put up ridiculous numbers in their time at Chino Hills and left indelible marks on the California high school basketball scene, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worst.

LiAngelo Ball has joined Thunder’s G League affiliate as practice player

LiAngelo Ball just got a step closer to cracking an NBA roster.

On Saturday, when the New Orleans Pelicans hosted the Indiana Pacers, Aaron, Justin and Jrue Holiday became the first trio of brothers to share an NBA court, something that LaVar Ball had hoped his three sons – LaMelo, LiAngelo and Lonzo — would be the first to do. However, while the Ball brothers might not be the first trio of brothers, the odds of them being the next trio increased over the weekend.

According to Joe Mussatto of the Oklahoman, LiAngelo – the middle Ball brother – has joined the Oklahoma City Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, as a practice player. This means that LiAngelo will get the opportunity to practice with G League players and have access to NBA facilities, but he won’t be part of the team’s active roster.

While that won’t do much for his chances to crack a G League roster elsewhere, it gives him a legitimate opportunity to make a good impression on the Thunder’s front office for either this season or next season.

It still remains to be seen what LiAngelo can offer at the NBA level, let alone the G League level, but it seems the Thunder are the team that’s going to give him the opportunity to show what he can do.

LaVar Ball admits to pressuring Illawarra Hawks to sign LiAngelo Ball

Earlier this NBL season, LaVar Ball admitted to trying to pressure Illawarra into signing LiAngelo Ball to team with brother LaMelo.

While LaMelo Ball has seen much success in the National Basketball Leauge, his Illawarra Hawks side has struggled from day one. Illawarra has spent much of the season at the bottom of the league standings even when the team had a healthy Aaron Brooks.

Once Brooks suffered a season-ending injury, the Hawks spent weeks searching for a replacement import player. Surprisingly, little speculation arose of pairing LaMelo with older brother LiAngelo. However, that doesn’t mean LaVar wasn’t trying just that behind the scenes.

In a recent interview with Fox Sports Australia, LaVar revealed that he pushed to have the Hawks ink LiAngelo to a deal to team up with LaMelo.

“I said, if you wanna start winning, get Gelo. That’s what I said. Other people were like, ah, don’t mess up what Melo’s got going on over there. I said that would be the best thing, because Gelo would be the perfect fit. You’ve got your brother playing with you.

“Them two together ain’t gonna lose… I don’t think (the Hawks) reacted the way that they should have; it would’ve been the best thing. You know how many people would’ve come to see the Ball boys play together? It was a win-win for everybody, but I don’t think other guys were pushing it that way.

Surprisingly, LaVar also was a bit rational about the situation, though he followed it with some more typical his typical brashness. While LaVar admitted that signing two Ball brothers would make it look like the family had a heavy hand in the team’s decisions, he also didn’t seem to mind if that was the case.

“They would probably think it looks like Big Baller is bullyish now, he’s got his other son over here. Now, there’s another thing to say, wow, Melo only passes to his brother; that co uld be the thing. There’s so many things that can go wrong on the outside, but you would win. Now, it’s just the Melo and LiAngelo show.”

LiAngelo has hardly been in the national spotlight in the recent year. After opting for surgery on his ankle in the spring, he has spent the summer and fall months rehabbing. LaVar did note in the interview that LiAngelo is fully healthy and able to play once again. He entered the G League pool last year prior to his surgery but no team signed him then and it’s hard to see a team signing him a year later with LiAngelo having not played any competitive basketball.

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Notre Dame fans tease UCLA with LiAngelo Ball chants

LiAngelo Ball never played for UCLA, but his name and shoplifting incident in China is plenty of ammunition for opposing fans.

LiAngelo Ball never played a meaningful game for the UCLA bruins due to his high-profile arrest in China in 2017, but his name is apparently still synonymous with the school for opposing fans.

When UCLA visited Notre Dame for their matchup on Saturday, fans of the Fighting Irish serenaded the Bruins on the court with LiAngelo Ball chants, according to Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times:

Bolch also reported Notre Dame’s fans mocked Jalen Hill, who was one of the three UCLA players arrested for shoplifting in China in 2017 along with Ball:

The teams combined to make five of their first 26 shots, leaving it up to the saucy Notre Dame students to provide the fun. They serenaded Hill with chants of “How was China?” when he shot free throws, referring to his international shoplifting incident from two years ago, and got even shrewder in the second half.

Ultimately, it was just playful taunting from a hostile home crowd, but it’s also a sign of how hard it’s going to be for Ball to shake that reputation. For someone that’s hoping to land a job in the NBA, that’s bad news, and the fact that he made light of the situation not too long ago probably doesn’t help his case.

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Even if Ball proves he’s talented enough to play in the NBA, his China scandal is something that he’ll have to overcome, which is clearly easier said than done.