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Video: LaVar Ball Guarantees Lakers Are Done Winning Titles After Trading Lonzo
June 16, 2019
LaVar Ball made a big prediction after son Lonzo Ball was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the New Orleans Pelicans as part of the Anthony Davis trade Saturday.
In an interview with ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk, LaVar said that the Lakers will never win another championship after dealing Lonzo:
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Lakers sent Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart and three first-round picks to the Pelicans for Davis.
LaVar added that he thinks the Lakers are going to "regret" the trade despite landing an MVP-caliber player in Davis who gives L.A. the star player it desperately needed to play alongside LeBron James after going just 37-45 last season.
The elder Ball also said, "I don't care where Lonzo plays," when asked about the trade to New Orleans, which will represent a significant step down in media pressure and scrutiny.
LaVar addressed that in a separate comment regarding Davis and also suggested that Davis' style of play as a big man will cause his body to "wear down."
The Lakers selected Lonzo with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft out of UCLA, but because of a combination of injuries and poor shooting, he didn't live up to the lofty expectations placed upon him.
Ball played in just 47 games last season because of an ankle injury and averaged 9.9 points, 5.4 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals while shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 32.9 percent from beyond the arc.
In New Orleans, Ball will have a chance to play alongside and learn from an All-Star point guard in Jrue Holiday, who is the Pels' top holdover player after the Davis trade.
Ball will also get the opportunity to join forces with Zion Williamson, who is expected to be selected first overall by the Pelicans in the 2019 NBA draft. Williamson is widely viewed as the NBA's next huge star in the same vein as LeBron.
The plan for Ball to become a massive star close to home in L.A. did not come to fruition, but he has a chance to truly advance his career on a young and talented New Orleans team.
Meanwhile, with the Warriors set to potentially be without both Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson for the entire 2019-20 season because of injury even if they re-sign, Caesars Palace has installed the Lakers as +350 favorites (bet $100 to win $350) to win the NBA championship next season.