LaVar Ball: Warriors Couldn't Draft LaMelo Because of My War of Words With Steve Kerr

LaVar Ball believes he knows why the Golden State Warriors passed on selecting his son, LaMelo Ball, with the No. 2 pick in the 2020 NBA draft.

Appearing on 95.7 The Game's The Morning Roast, Ball said his war of words with Warriors head coach Steve Kerr made it impossible for them to select LaMelo:

The verbal battle between Kerr and Ball took place in 2017 when the Warriors head coach made a comment about Ball's feud with then-President Donald Trump that was part of a larger point he was making about how the media was covering Ball.

"Somewhere, I guess it's in Lithuania, LaVar Ball is laughing at all of us," Kerr told reporters in November 2017. "People are eating out of his hands for no apparent reason other than he's become like the Kardashian of the NBA or something, and that sells."

When asked about Kerr's comments, Ball responded by calling him the "Milli Vanilli of coaching."

There have been conflicting reports over the past year about Golden State's level of interest in Ball with its top pick in the 2020 draft.

On a March episode of the Jalen & Jacoby podcast (h/t Cody Taylor of USA Today), Jalen Rose said the Warriors "told LaMelo Ball they were going to take him" with the No. 2 pick on the night of the draft.

Ball also seemed to hint on draft night that he was going No. 2 in an Instagram Live video by holding up two fingers.

Around the same time, ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported on an episode of Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective podcast that Golden State "really liked" Ball, but the team was "always focused" on James Wiseman and would have selected him if it had the No. 1 pick.

The Warriors ultimately selected Wiseman second overall, with Ball going to the Charlotte Hornets at No. 3.

Things have turned out fine for the Warriors, even though Wiseman has yet to take off. They are off to a 6-1 start and rank third in the NBA in net rating (+9.5).

Wiseman has yet to appear in a game this season after undergoing surgery in April to repair a torn meniscus. The 20-year-old was cleared for full practice activities Monday.

Ball, meanwhile, has turned into one of the most exciting young players in the NBA. He was named the 2021 Rookie of the Year and is currently averaging 19.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.9 steals per game on 40 percent three-point shooting in nine games this season.