If the Knicks receive the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft June 25 at Barclays Center, Lavar Ball wants New York to take his son LaMelo Ball.
LaMelo, 18, is formerly the 247Sports Composite's No. 23 overall prospect, No. 3 point guard and No. 1 player in California by way of Chino (Calif.) Hills and Geneva (Ohio) SPIRE Academy. He took his talents overseas with Prienai in the Lithuanian Basketball League in 2018 before returning to the United States later that year to play for the Los Angeles Ballers from the now-defunct Junior Basketball Association.
After most recently playing for the Illawarra Hawks in Australia's National Basketball League for the 2019-20 season, logging 17 points, 7.5 rebounds and seven assists in 31.2 minutes over 12 games, LaMelo returned Jan. 28 to the U.S. as he began his draft preparation. Lavar appeared Tuesday on FS1's Undisputed and was asked about his son's transition to the NBA, and he named the Knicks as the preferred landing spot.
Where does LaVar Ball want his son LaMelo to play?
"The best fit in my eyes is the New York Knicks" 👀
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"The best fit, in my eyes, is New York," Lavar said. "The New York Knicks because I know Melo. Melo is a big-city guy. He likes that. He'd love it. So everybody's talking about the city type of thing. Cleveland, he already lived in Cleveland. He don't like that cold weather like that -- especially if you're not going to be inside with a lot of bright lights.
"So I think it's about time for New York. I kind of feel like they're going to get the first pick, on the fact that they missed it so many times and it's time for it to happen to them."
LaMelo originally committed July 31, 2015, to UCLA before he reopened his recruitment Dec. 7, 2017, and signed with agent Harrison Gaines of SLASH Sports & Entertainment to play overseas with his older brother, LiAngelo, whom the Bruins saw withdraw from the university after he was suspended for his involvement in a November 2017 shoplifting arrest while the team was in China.
Lonzo, the oldest Ball brother, is in his third NBA season. A one-and-done UCLA point guard from the Bruins' 2016-17 season, he was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft and traded June 15 to the New Orleans Pelicans.
Could LaMelo one-up Lonzo by becoming the first player off the board in the draft? Lavar is speaking that outcome into existence.
"Could he? He is going one. He's got to go one," Lavar said. "Usually, you're going to take the guy who's most popular. Now, (Knicks shooting guard) RJ (Barrett), he played pretty good (in college at Duke last season). I think he was a little better player than (Pelicans power forward and top 2019 NBA draft pick) Zion (Williamson) when he started. But Zion has popularity, boosted him to one. How did (Memphis Grizzlies point guard) Ja Morant come from Murray State and be No. 2? Because you're the best guard in it.
"So Melo happens to be both. He's the most popular and the best guard. How you going to go No. 1? If you want your franchise (to succeed), you've got to put people in those seats.
"I want to see him in the best situation, whatever coach is going to let him loose and do his thing. That's what I want to see. So it don't matter where he go. Now, you could go to a certain place over here where the coach isn't going to play you the right way, you know? But I need him to be free. I need him to win. And the only way he can do that is not having no restrictions on him. Let him do what he does. So whoever (is) going to give him the best of that. Let him do it right, man."
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March 05, 2020 at 06:15AM
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Knicks are 'best fit' for LaMelo Ball, Lavar Ball says of son's NBA potential - SNY.tv
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