LaMelo Ball has been described as many things in the many years he has been in the national spotlight, both on and off the court.
Flashy. Arrogant. Cocky. Fearless. Smart. Hard-worker. Quiet. Immature.
Each word in some way or another has defined Ball at some point. A shrewd thinker, though, has not.
But as Ball sat in an empty weight room in front of a computer on Monday taking part in a media availability via Zoom as part of the NBA Draft Combine, the question was posed as to how he was handling the unique nature of the pre-draft process this season and a typically concise Ball had a moment of profoundness.
“I think I’m dealing with it really well,” he said. “I kind of like how it’s just like the first time we’ve ever seen it and it’s all unique because I feel like I’m like that, too. I feel like it’s all something new.”
In many ways, it’s fitting that Ball’s pre-draft process comes from a distance as it’s a perfect summation of the vast majority of his basketball career up to this point.
His games have been consumed behind computer screens and on social media via 60-second highlights. Since leaving Chino Hills in 2017, only brief stints with SPIRE and in the JBA have fans in America even had the opportunity to catch Ball’s games firsthand.
Trips to Lithuania and Australia have been more than just stamps on Ball’s passport, but situations and environments that have forced the youngest member of the Ball family to adapt and grow or be left behind.
“Honestly, I feel like that helps a lot,” he said of his experience in the NBL with the Illawarra Hawks. “I feel like that (explains) how I am now with any team that picks me, I’m good because being over there, it’s just a whole different world, you know. It’s something you’ve got to see.
“Even with Lithuania, being through that, too, it’s just a lot of stuff I’ve been through to make me who I am today.”
Ball may not have taken his stop in Lithuania in stride, but he hit the ground running in Australia and needed just a dozen games to establish himself as one of the top prospects for November’s draft.
Monday, then, provided a glimpse at the person Ball has become since his days of hoisting half-court shots and cherry-picking his way to 92 points with Chino Hills.
“I feel like everything I did led me to who I am today,” he said. “So, I’m grateful for it, thankful, and I feel like it all just helped.”
Ball fielded questions from reporters across the globe. He was asked if he had spoken to numerous teams, ranging from the Pistons to the Cavs to the Suns and the Timberwolves, who hold the No. 1 pick. Each inquiry was met with an increasingly coy denial with one notable exception in the Knicks.
He did admit to having talked with teams, which made the admission of a conversation with New York all the more noteworthy. Like everyone else, the questions from the franchises centered on getting to know who Ball is.
“I feel like (the teams want to) just get to know me,” Ball said, “because there’s a whole lot of stuff out here that just doesn’t really, you won’t even know if it’s me or not. So, pretty much just get to know me.”
Ball isn’t the kid with the trademark hair cut and jump shot from those days at Chino. He isn’t the kid who lets his dad do his talking anymore, as he was sure to point out.
“I’m my own man,” he said. “He’s his own man. He has his opinions and I have mine. Like I said, I feel like I can play on any team, do good anywhere I go. Anything that happens, I’ll be positive.”
Instead, he’s blossomed into a very legitimate prospect, one that can pass at an elite level, run the pick and roll with the best of them and will make an impact from day one in the NBA.
Despite consistently noting that he feels he can fit with any team, Ball also added that he wanted the ball in his hands, a fair request for arguably the top point guard in the draft.
“Like I said, I feel like I could be successful in any situation,” he said. “But I would like to have the ball because, as a point guard, I feel like the point guard needs the ball to make plays.”
He also noted the validity of the comparisons to Lonzo, his oldest brother and current Pelicans point guard who was selected No. 2 overall in 2017. LaMelo said he’s in touch with his brother on a daily basis, seeking advice for what is to come.
The comparison stems largely from the familial bonds because the two are hardly similar on the court. Lonzo has carved out a role as a three-point shooter and defensive point guard. But neither of those things were calling cards for LaMelo in the NBL last season, who hung his hat largely on his playmaking ability. One of the lone common characteristics is their passing ability with both showing an understanding of the game well beyond their age.
LaMelo, though, isn’t modeling his game after any player, past or present, family or not. His unique journey to where he is now has led to a unique prospect that has hardly been seen before.
“I don’t really compare myself to nobody. I feel like I’m myself. One of one.”
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