When looking back at the Los Angeles Lakers’ era following Kobe Bryant’s retirement, they were forced to go through a lengthy rebuild. The man who was supposed to bring them out of that was Lonzo Ball, who they selected second overall out of UCLA in 2017.
As a Chino Hills native, it made sense for Ball to taken by his hometown team after playing a year for UCLA. However, he believes that his dad LaVar played a huge role in him ultimately being drafted by the Lakers.
“I think he had a huge influence on it, bro,” Lonzo said on the Curious Mike podcast. “To be honest, I think he damn near made it to where they had to pick me. I really do feel like that.”
Leading up to the draft, LaVar built up a lot of hype around his son, which generated plenty of talk on social media. This made it hard for Lonzo, from his perspective, to live up to those lofty expectations set by his father.
When he suited up for the the Lakers, every game was a spectacle and Lonzo’s performances were judged harshly. Ultimately, when LeBron James came into town, the UCLA product showed flashes of operating on and off the ball but that still wasn’t enough for him to reach his potential.
Unfortunately, general manager Rob Pelinka decided that the Lakers’ young core could not win a championship and shipped to the New Orleans Pelicans for Anthony Davis. Lonzo could have become a feel-good story as a homegrown product, but it appeared the outside noise garnered too much hype and unrealistic expectations, and he has since dealt with numerous injuries that cut his career short.
Lonzo Ball recalls wild Lakers film session involving Julius Randle
The Lakers never want to be in a position to rebuild, but it is part of the process in today’s NBA. After Bryant retired, Los Angeles was able to collect a considerable amount of young talent, but they never put it together.
Instability at head coach played a factor, as there was no consistent voice empowering these players to develop. During Ball’s tenure in L.A., he recalled a film session where Julius Randle was signaled out to simply screen and rebound.
As a former lottery pick, Randle was much more than a dirty work player. He, along with others, struggled with ever-changing roles with the Lakers, but that encounter presumably played a factor in his departure in 2018.
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