Tag: NBA Draft

The Ball brothers are changing agents in their latest business move together. They’re all planning on signing representation agreements with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Sports, according to a report from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.

The brothers — Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo — were previously all represented by CAA but left the agency in March after signing on a year before.

Signing with Roc Nation feels very much so like a Ball family move. I mean, it’s Jay-Z’s sports agency. It doesn’t really get more “high profile” than that. And high-profile has very much so been apart of the Ball brand since Lonzo entered the NBA.

The big difference here — it seems from what we know so far — is that the brothers, and not their ever-involved father LaVar, are handling more of the decision making.

LaMelo Ball’s manager, Jermaine Jackson, was the one who broke the story to Givony, saying “They are brothers and they love each other and that’s how they roll” and “They don’t separate from each other.”

The allure of working with Jay-Z and building beyond basketball factored in the decision.

“This was a family decision,” Jackson said. “This is now an extended family. They put together a beautiful game plan with Jay-Z. The basketball game is about to change. They are going to create something totally new.”

The Dynasty: Ball La Familia album confirmed. Clearly.

In all seriousness, though, the timing of this is … curious. The most obvious thing is LaMelo Ball’s draft status. He’s a consensus top 3 pick in the NBA draft right now and could potentially land with the Knicks next season in New York where Roc Nation is based.

On top of that, Lonzo Ball is up for an extension this offseason. And on top of that,  LiAngelo Ball had finally worked his way into a shot in the G-League, before coronavirus canceled everything, by agreeing to a deal with the OKC Blue.

And we haven’t even mentioned the shoe deals that Lonzo and LaMelo are looking for after ditching the Big Baller Brand founded by their father, LaVar.

Jay-Z is Puma’s Creative Director, so they’ll have a connection there. But there’s also a pretty clear line to Nike, seeing as though LaMelo and Lonzo have almost exclusively worn Nike’s since leaving Big Baller Brand. LaMelo, in particular, will have every brand knocking on his door as a potential No. 1 overall pick.

All this is to say they’re all at pretty pivotal points in the early stages of their careers right now. Nailing their representation is essential right now to make the most out of it.

It’s difficult to figure out the Ball family’s dynamics, even if they often air their grievances on a reality show. LaVar Ball became one of the most controversial people in sports with his bold schemes and audacious proclamations — some of which were actually admirable — but ultimately his inexperience may have hurt his sons along the way.

So if the Ball sons are finally getting more of say over the family business and opting to pair with Roc Nation, then maybe they’re more prepared than they’ve ever been for what’s next.