Before he ever stepped foot on an NBA floor, Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball had a ton of pressure on him in large part due to the proclamations of his father, LaVar Ball.
LaVar made a ton of claims regarding what his son would do as a rookie. While Lonzo had some good moments, he also had more than his share of struggles in an up-and-down first season.
But that has done nothing to lessen LaVar’s confidence in his son and his latest claim comes at the expense of San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard.
Appearing on ESPN L.A. Radio with Marcellus Wiley and Travis Rodgers, LaVar claimed that Lonzo is better than the former NBA Finals MVP:
“Stop it! Stop. Stop. Stop it. Hell no. Lonzo, I’m gonna tell you what he does, makes everybody on the team better. Who don’t want to start a team with that? You put Kawhi on there, he won’t make everybody better. He’s gonna do his thing. He’s a specialty guy.”
It is truly impressive that LaVar maintains all confidence in his son regardless of his struggles as a rookie. Lonzo undoubtedly showed that he can make an impact in the NBA and there is never anything wrong with a father believing in his son.
Lonzo really taking the reins of the Lakers is likely something that many would love to see. Including president of basketball operations Magic Johnson, general manager Rob Pelinka and head coach Luke Walton, who are all expecting a lot from Lonzo this offseason.
LaVar isn’t wrong that Lonzo made a difference with the Lakers’ young players, but if he is going to prove to be better than someone like Kawhi, he will need to take his game to the next level.
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