Teams in American professional sports leagues continue to trend toward younger, more athletic and versatile rosters. Such is the case for the Los Angeles Lakers, who boast nine players age 25 or younger on their current roster.
The youngest of which is rookie point guard Lonzo Ball, who was taken with the second pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. While Ball didn’t celebrate his 20th birthday until Oct. 27, much has been expected of him.
That’s come with an intense spotlight and scrutiny for every move of his, from missed jump shots to getting a hair cut. Considering he’s been anointed as one of the faces of the Lakers franchise, it’s easy to forget just how young Ball is.
He provided a refreshing, if not hilarious reminder at Monday’s practice in New York. While shooting free throws with teammate Kyle Kuzma, Ball asked Lakers assistant coach about the song playing in the background — Star Wars theme — and if it featured any words.
Their exchange begins just over one minute into the video provided below, via ESPN’s Arash Markazi:
Lonzo: Is this a real song?
Shaw: It’s the theme to Star Wars.
Lonzo: I know but there’s no words?
Shaw: (Shakes his head.) pic.twitter.com/vObexuI9ZG— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) December 11, 2017
Ball is not the first rookie in Los Angeles to show his youth. Earlier this year, Dodgers first baseman Cody Bellinger admitted on ESPN during a live interview with Scott Van Pelt that he was unaware of who Jerry Seinfeld was.
But unlike Ball, Bellinger was the youngest on an otherwise experienced roster, and the snafu led to his being the brunt of countless jokes from teammates.
WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DISCUSSION? CHECK OUT THE NEW LAKERSNATION FORUM CLUB