Los Angeles Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball may be a polarizing player to many fans, but one person who will never stop believing in him is his father LaVar Ball.
LaVar has been singing his son’s praises since before he was in the league, and doesn’t look to be stopping anytime soon. However, with the new additions made by the Lakers this summer, some are questioning whether Lonzo will be able to be a leader.
The likes of Rajon Rondo and Lance Stephenson have very strong personalities, not to mention LeBron James, the ultimate strong personality. Lonzo is more of a quiet leader, but that means nothing to LaVar.
Appearing on the “Sauce and Shram Show” on WatchStadium.com, LaVar said that Lonzo has always had characters on his team, and maintained his son will make everyone, including James, a better player:
“Let me tell you this, Lonzo has always had some interesting characters join his team. From high school to AAU to whatever. And he makes them all play. He’ll get them to play. The proof is in the pudding. Like I tell everybody, Lonzo makes everybody better. Including LeBron. Whoever is on the court is going to be better. So you could put Rondo out there, and Lonzo will make him want to play with him. Here’s one thing, there’s nobody that Lonzo’s ever played with that’s said, ‘I don’t ever want to play with Lonzo.’”
One thing that does tend to ring true is that Lonzo is a fun player to play with. He is always looking to get shots for his teammates and make the right basketball play. Most players tend to love anyone who will get them open shots.
But being able to corral the likes of Rondo, Stephenson, and JaVale McGee is another challenge within itself. If Lonzo can pull that off, it will say a lot about his leadership abilities at such a young age.
And though Lonzo presumably will have a positive impact on his teammates, LaVar also stated there is nothing for him to learn from James, and vice versa.
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