The Los Angeles Lakers hold the No. 2 overall pick in June's NBA Draft, where the consensus belief is that the organization will select UCLA product Lonzo Ball. As such, the Lakers -- and specifically Magic Johnson, the President of Basketball Operations -- are doing their due diligence digging into many prospects and their history.
For Lonzo, the deepest that teams might be digging is in regards to LaVar Ball, who has been outspoken about his son Lonzo throughout his draft process. LaVar is frequently in news headlines and, as a result, some believe he might concern any team that would draft Lonzo.
That's not the case for the Lakers, according to Johnson, who compared LaVar to Kris Jenner in an interview on ESPN Radio Wednesday.
"The Kardashians, we didn't say that the mom [Jenner] was bad, and she made them a lot of money, right? She's bragged on her daughters, and I think it's the same here," Magic explained. "He's saying, 'Hey, my son is great,' and there's nothing bad with that. So we're not looking at LaVar being a problem if we're blessed to have the opportunity to draft Lonzo."
For as bizarre and outrageous as some of LaVar's claims have been, saying his son is better than Steph Curry, for example, he has long maintained that his confidence is in his son. He's a parent, after all, and a proud one at that. For that reason, Magic says the Lakers don't see LaVar as a distraction -- as long as it isn't a distraction to Lonzo.
"As long as it doesn't bother [Lonzo], it's not going to bother the Laker organization, as long as Lonzo performs on the basketball court," said Johnson. "Will that make him have a target on his back? Well, of course, guys want to come in and take it to him. And not just because of LaVar. But because he's a rookie, because he would be a No. 1 pick or No. 2 pick or No. 3 pick."
