It is with great sorrow we must report that LaVar Ball is back on his nonsense.
With an abundance of trade rumors circulating around the Lakers prior to this week's NBA trade deadline, Lonzo Ball's outspoken dad made an appearance on "Undisputed" on Thursday morning. It should come as no surprise that he had some outrageous things to say, most notably that his son is better than LeBron James.
.@ShannonSharpe: Are you saying Lonzo is better than LeBron?@Lavarbigballer: Yes. pic.twitter.com/8sR2og2Mej
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) February 7, 2019
That's an interesting position to take. Let's refer to the stats, shall we?
| 2018-19 season | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Lonzo Ball
LAL PG
| 9.9 | 5.3 | 5.4 | 1.5 |
LeBron James
LAL SF
| 26.9 | 8.4 | 7.3 | 1.3 |
So the stats don't exactly land in Lonzo's favor, but maybe Lavar has a solid explanation as to why he thinks Lonzo is better than LeBron. Let's hear him out.
LaVar Ball says Lonzo is better than LeBron "He getting old"....then takes shot at LeBron's free throw shooting "He's been in the league a long time to not be able to hit no free throws" pic.twitter.com/59PisEPhQX
— gifdsports (@gifdsports) February 7, 2019
Free throws, you say? Okay, back to the stat sheet.
| 2018-19 season | Free-throw percentage | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Lonzo Ball
LAL PG
| 42 percent | | | |
LeBron James
LAL SF
| 68 percent | | | |
Ah, right. But, credit where credit is due, LaVar is 100 percent correct about LeBron being older than Lonzo. He's got a point there.
But it's important to keep in mind that this is the same LaVar Ball who just a few days ago ripped the Lakers as an organization and campaigned for Lonzo to be traded to the Phoenix Suns.
"I gave the Lakers the first right of refusal. I said, 'Get all three of my boys and you got championships.' They think I'm just talking," the elder Ball told an Arizona sports radio station earlier this week.
"He's a better fit in Phoenix because they got some young athletes, they've been losing, they need a winning attitude. The Lakers gave my boy that losing attitude."
With that in mind, it feels like maybe we should take any of LaVar's LeBron criticisms with a grain of salt. Or, more accurate, an entire barrel of salt.
