Lonzo Ball Struggles Scoring, Deals 10 Assists as Lakers Beat John Wall, Wizards

Say what you will about LaVar Ball, but he was right. Again.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hit a go-ahead three with 58 seconds remaining in overtime and Lonzo Ball had a hand in John Wall's face as he missed a game-tying jumper, helping lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 102-99 overtime win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.

Ball, who struggled once again with his shot, set up critical threes from Kyle Kuzma and Caldwell-Pope during the overtime period. He finished with six points, eight rebounds and 10 assists.

Wall had 18 points and nine assists, but he had just one basket in the fourth quarter and overtime. His minus-14 plus-minus was the worst on Washington's roster.   

The matchup between Ball and Wall, hyped thanks to some boisterous words from LaVar, was largely a dud. Neither player was anywhere near the peak of his game, and their memorable moments together were few—especially in a dreary first half. 

Ten of Wall's 18 points came in the third quarter as he attempted to overcome a first half that saw him accumulate as many turnovers (three) as made shots. He came into Wednesday night saying he wanted to show Ball "no mercy" due to comments made by LaVar, who guaranteed a Lakers victory. 

“Washington coming in here Wednesday? They better beware,” LaVar Ball said. “Because Lonzo ain’t losing again! Not in the same week!”

The Wizards responded publicly and forcefully, with Marcin Gortat saying Wall would "torture" Lonzo. 

"His dad has gone on top of all that," Wall told reporters of the hype surrounding Ball. "Forget what the media is saying. 'This is what my son is.' Which, I’m not knocking him. He's hyping his son up but he's already getting all that hype. ... He's just taking it to another level.

"We didn't say nothing about him, nothing to him, and he says, 'The Wizards better be ready because he don't ever lose two in a row.' Like, this is the league now. It’s a different ballgame."

Ball floundered shooting once again, with his six points coming on 2-of-11 shooting. The second overall pick has recorded three or fewer field goals and scored under 10 points three times this season. He's gone 0-of-10 from three-point range in the last two games and clanked a handful of open jumpers against Washington.

His best plays of the game came on dimes, which also included setting up Julius Randle for a three-pointer with 20 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, cutting the Lakers' deficit to 91-90. Brandon Ingram would later tie the game with 0.7 seconds left on a frantic tip-in to send it to overtime. 

The Lakers mostly stayed in the game in spite of Ball's troubles, with Larry Nance and Ingram putting together solid efforts. Nance recorded his second double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Ingram had a team-high 19 and added 10 boards as well. Ingram has now scored in double figures in three of the Lakers' first four games.

Kuzma (15 points), Caldwell-Pope (14) and Randle (11) were all in double figures too.

Bradley Beal scored a game-high 28 points in a losing effort. He missed a game-winning three-pointer as time expired in regulation.

The Wizards will stay in California for a matchup with the Golden State Warriors on Friday. The Lakers host the Toronto Raptors on Friday.