Some sports apparel executives have already made it clear that LaVar Ball’s antics are making an impact on his son Lonzo’s marketability, but what about the former UCLA star’s draft stock?
The Los Angeles Lakers have the third-best chance to earn the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, and president of basketball operations Magic Johnson recently said LaVar’s outlandish remarks have “no effect” on his opinion of Lonzo. However, Multiple NBA executives and scouts told Marc Berman of the New York Post that Magic’s opinion is not shared by everyone.
“Talking to people here (at the combine), some guys are straying away from him as a top pick,” a Western Conference scout whose team is not part of the lottery said. “If you don’t play him the right way, is the father going to say something? And you don’t want to have him on a big stage like New York. You’re always thinking: What’s next?”
Lonzo isn’t going to have some shocking slide down the draft board, but an Eastern Conference executive wondered out loud if Ball would be the consensus No. 1 pick if not for his dad.
“I don’t think he falls past No. 2, but it’s a concern in the back of everyone’s mind,” the exec told Berman. “The team will have to sit down with Lonzo and LaVar to set the groundwork. It will be interesting.”
Other executives said they believe LaVar’s outlandish remarks will have an effect on Lonzo’s brand, but not his value to NBA teams. A GM whose team is in the lottery insisted he and his coworkers are “less concerned with the father than the media is making it out,” adding that Lonzo is considered a likable person and teammate. An Eastern Conference scout agreed.
“His father might go crazy in New York,” the scout said. “But you’re very impressed with how the son is a poised young man. A star offensive big man would love to play with him. He’s a great facilitator.”
You get the point. LaVar’s outspokenness may be an issue, or it may not. We won’t know until June. What we do know is that many people think the Ball family is insane for the price they are charging for Lonzo’s first signature shoe. But if teams think the point guard is a player to build a franchise around, it’s worth putting up with his old man.
