On Friday, Lonzo and LaMelo Ball squared off against each other for the first time on the court in the NBA as the New Orleans Pelicans hosted the Charlotte Hornets, and the advantage went to the youngest brother.
LaMelo, 19, finished just one assist shy of becoming the youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double. He produced 12 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists off the bench to lead the Hornets to a 118-110 victory over the Pelicans.
On the other side, Lonzo tallied five points, three assists, two rebounds, one steal and one block in 36 minutes of work. He largely struggled from the field, converting on just 2-of-8 shots attempts, including 1-of-7 from 3-point range.
The two were matched up on each other periodically throughout the contest, either through switching on defense or on certain possessions. The first scoring situation came during the first half, when LaMelo grabbed a rebound and then took it in with Lonzo on him the whole way.
LaMelo gets the offensive rebound off the free throw, then finishes over Lonzo with the layup pic.twitter.com/iYMjzLYCNd
— Jacob Rude of Aggregation Nation (@JacobRude) January 9, 2021
But the best play between the two brothers occurred at the end of the third quarter.
LaMelo had the ball with the Hornets looking to hold it for the final shot of the quarter. With the time winding down, LaMelo went to his left and then pulled up to drain the 3-pointer over Lonzo to send the game off to the fourth quarter.
LaMelo buries the three over Lonzo to end the 3rd! pic.twitter.com/7Oky94F0QP
— Jacob Rude of Aggregation Nation (@JacobRude) January 9, 2021
While LaMelo got the best of his oldest brother on those two possessions, they faced off later on in the fourth quarter in a jump-ball situation with Lonzo winning that battle. However, it was LaMelo who got the last laugh in the end.
The matchup didn’t quite live up to the hype but produced a few notable moments. The two had already made history prior to the matchup, becoming the first pair of siblings to be selected in the top three in the NBA draft. Ahead of the matchup, they largely downplayed the significance of the occasion and just chalked it up to another game.
Whether or not the two truly feel that way is a topic for another day…
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