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Unfiltered, off-kilter and outspoken, LaVar Ball has been spouting ridiculous, nonsensical diatribes for our enjoyment for almost over a year now and has managed to remain relevant by saying whatever is on his mind.
He's a promoter who has been building up his sons, his brand and himself in the manner of an old-school wrestling manager who knows how to goad an audience. With one outlandish claim after another, the braggadocios basketball dad of the NBA has thrust himself into the national spotlight. Love him or hate him, it doesn't look like LaVar Ball is going to fade from relevance anytime soon.
LaVar is a quote machine and there are too many ridiculous comments for us to cover all of them. Therefore, let us look at the top 10 most outlandish comments made by LaVar Ball.
10.) ‘If Charles thought like me, maybe he’d have won a championship’
Similar to Charles Barkley, LaVar Ball is not shy of speaking his mind in front of the microphone. We shouldn’t be surprised that two of the loudest, least filtered people in the sports right now would find their way into a feud.
Charles, just like everyone else thought that LaVar should probably cut back on the hipping up of his son. Since Charles has never been timid about sharing his opinion, he reacted to LaVar’s outlandish claims as “stupidity”.
Mr. Ball responded back on ‘The Herd’ with Colin Cowherd by saying:
“I don’t pull anything back. Whatever I say I say. It’s just like, what Charles Barkley is saying and all these guys, if Charles thought like me, maybe he’d win a championship. Because he’s saying sometimes when stuff comes out of people’s mouth it’s just stupid. Guess what, you’re talking too.”
It just doesn’t make any sense how thinking like LaVar Ball would have helped Charley Barkley in winning a championship.
As expected, Charles dignified all this with a reply saying that:
“Your son’s life is his life, it’s not yours.” He also said, “I didn’t win a championship. I’m all right. I will compare my exploits to Mr. Ball’s anytime.
9.) "Lakers to the Playoffs his first year"
LaVar Ball might not be the only person who predicted at the start of last season stating that the Lakers will make it to the playoffs as there were many fanatics of the Lakers with the same opinion. But LaVar Ball made the claim that it was because of his son that the Lakers will make it to the playoffs in his rookie season.
"Lonzo Ball is gonna take the Lakers to the playoffs next year." (via CBS Sports)
The Los Angeles Lakers ended the 2017-18 season at the 11th spot in the Western Conference Finals with a record of 35-47 with thirteen wins away from landing the 8th spot. The season was not as bad as it looks as they did more than just draft Lonzo. They signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency and acquired Brook Lopez and the pick they used on Kyle Kuzma in a trade that sent D'Angelo Russell and Timofey Mozgov to the Nets. They also selected Josh Hart during the draft. But the baby Lakers were nowhere near ready to content for a playoff spot.
LaVar Ball doubled down on his predictions on ESPN First Take stating that the Lakers will win 50 games in the season. And of course that didn't happen either.
Not only was Lonzo a reason for them not qualifying for the playoffs, but he struggled to find his form during the course of the season.
8.) "Rookie of the Year? It's Already a Done Deal."
Even if LaVar Ball forgot Ben Simmons was eligible for Rookie of the Year after missing his previous season with a broken foot, this one hasn't aged well.
"Rookie of the Year? It's already a done deal, I got the trophy already...How could he not be?" (via gifdsports)
Although Lonzo would go onto win the MVP honors in the Las Vegas Summer League shortly after LaVar made these comments, he was far from the best rookie in the league. Lonzo Ball averaged 10.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 7.2 assists, 1.7 steals while shooting 30.5 percent from beyond the arc and 36 percent from the field in his rookie year. He filled up the stat sheet, but that has to do more with his usage than efficiency.
Ben Simmons, Donovan Mitchell, Lauri Markkanen, Jayson Tatum and Dennis Smith Jr. all had far better seasons. Simmons, Mitchell, and Tatum proved their worth even in the playoffs and look more promising than Lonzo as of now.
Lonzo might not even be the best rookie in his own team. Kyle Kuzma averaged 16.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 36.6 percent from beyond the arc and 45 percent from the field and had a much more impressive season than Lonzo.
7.) "A Billion Dollars...That's Our Number"
LaVar Ball last march announced an absurd asking price for his for all three of his sons.
"A billion dollars, it has to be there. That’s our number, a billion, straight out of the gate. And you don't even have to give it to me all up front. Give us $100 mil over 10 years." (via Josh Peter, USA Today)
He got no response from anybody and no one had to do anything with his pricing. So LaVar, as he usually does, by May doubled down on his prediction by upping his price to $3 billion.
"If they want to talk to me now, it just went up to $3 billion. Triple Bs—billion, billion, billion," Ball said on The Herd with Colin Cowherd (via ESPN.com).
Since initially no one responded to his $1 billion asking price, tripling it is definitely going to pique the interests of others. Had Lonzo gone the traditional way, he would likely have been in line for nearly a five-year, $15 million endorsement deal.
As expected, the big fishes of the industry have been deafeningly silent in response to the Big Baller Brand.
6.) "We're Not Competing with Nike...We're a Step Above Them"
Well, this one has to make you laugh. How would one even respond to this level of nonsense?
"We not even caring about Nike and Adidas and Under Armour. We not even competing with them, because we're better than them, we're a step above them. We're what you call a premium activewear." (via ESPN)
Nike was valued at $110.3 billion as of June 2018, according to Forbes, while Adidas was valued at $46.2 billion and Under Armour at $20.2 billion. Meanwhile, the Big Baller Brand was expected to make a profit of $445,500 from ZO2 shoes. Having said that, more goes into evaluating a brand than just the profit they made from their first shoe line. The Big Baller Brand received an F grade from the Better Business Bureau which is the lowest rating possible.
Not only are the Big Baller Brand not a “step above” any of those companies, they aren’t anywhere near the industry giants. As far any reaction goes from these companies, this just a murmur far off in the distance for Nike, Adidas and Under Armour.
5.) "Zo is the best player in the world"
There is one thing to make a bold claim, and the other is to make a non-nonsensical claim that is just stupid to say. That is what LaVar Ball does here.
"To me, Zo is the best player in the world.....I don't know if he can beat [LeBron James and Russell Westbrook] one-on-one, but i know he can beat them five-on-five." (via Sean Gregory, Time)
There is nothing wrong in LaVar believing in his son who has the chance to develop into a really good player in the league. Even though LaVar showed a shred of humility by recognizing that many other players in the NBA will have size advantage over Lonzo which could prove unfavorable in a one-on-one match-up, this is still peak outlandish.
It is simply sacrilegious to put Lonzo in the same breath as LeBron James and Russell Westbrook right now who are unarguably two of the top 5 players in the league. Forget being the best player in the world, he might not even be the best player in his own team behind Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram and now of course LeBron.
4.) "Lonzo's fittin' to step over Magic (Johnson) to be the best guard ever."
LaVar Ball’s moto since he has gained popularity has been, “speak it into existence,” This is nothing but another instance of that policy and just like his other ones, it is an outrageous one.
When asked about the relationship between Lonzo Ball and Lakers president Magic Johnson during his Lonzo’s summer league days, LaVar told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne,
"Y'all about to see the best guard -- with Magic, what he was doing, he fittin' to pass the torch to Lonzo," LaVar Ball said. "Lonzo's fittin' to step over him, to be the best guard ever."
Ervin Magic Johnson is recognized by everyone as one of the best if not the best point guard to have ever set foot on the court. He is a 5 time NBA Champion, a three-time league MVP, a three-time Finals MVP, a 12-time All-Star and a nine-time All-NBA First Team selection. For his career, Johnson averaged 19.5 points, 11.2 assists and 7.2 rebounds per game during his 13-year run with the Lakers.
Lonzo has had a dubious start to his career compared to the hype surrounding him and averaged 10.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 7.2 assists, 1.7 steals while shooting 30.5 percent from beyond the arc and 36 percent from the field.
Lonzo is similar in his playing style when compared to Magic. He is a gifted passer, a good rebounder and not a very good jump shooter. But there is much more to Magic than the stats and Lonzo has a long way to go if he wants his name to be even considered alongside Magic for the best point guard ever to play the game.
3.) "He's Better Than Steph Curry"
This was definitely not the first time LaVar Ball had said something outrageous in his life, but it surely was the first time he said something on national stage.
“You can’t compare my boy to anyone…he’s gonna be better than Steph Curry in the NBA.” (via TMZ)
That is some comparison to be made between then 19-year-old Lonzo Ball and then the 2 time reigning NBA MVP. You think LaVar might have spoken too much in the heat of the moment and would take back his comments when given the chance. But LaVar instead doubled down adding, “Put Steph Curry on UCLA’s team right now and put my boy on Golden State Warriors and watch what happens.”
What would have happened Is Curry would have averaged about 50 points per game in UCLA and Lonzo would have been no better than the fourth or the fifth option on the Golden State Warriors' roster.
Curry rejected to react to LaVar’s comments as he said, “I don’t want to talk about that.” And really why should he have cared. He was the 2 time reigning MVP, first unanimous MVP in the history of the league and a NBA champion. When further pressured to respond by LaVar, Curry took the high road and told, “Every person should parent their kid how they feel they should. That’s it.”
Although these comments didn’t have any effect on Steph Curry, it did launch LaVar Ball into prominence. That, as we all know, was only the beginning.
2.) "James is too weak"
This has now gotten to the point of madness. The Braggadocios basketball dad has recently made another claim about this time his son’s new teammate, the ‘King’ LeBron James.
In a recent interview with Fanatics View, Ball said he would have been able to beat LeBron James because the four-time NBA MVP is "too weak."
"[James is] too weak, Back in my heyday, can't nobody hold me. 270 (pounds), benching 500? All I gotta do is back you in, I'll lift all of them up off their feet."
The 6-foot-8, 250-pound James averaged 27.5 points, 9.1 assists and 8.6 rebounds per game with the Cleveland Cavaliers this past season and is coming off an eighth consecutive appearance in the NBA Finals. All though no introduction is as such required for LeBron, that is enough to know how high LaVar is gonna lift him up off his feet.
Not only did he say he would beat LeBron one-on-one, he said he would beat all of them.
"You want to see me back in my heyday? I was a bad mama jama. My will to win was too hard. One-on-one, I bet on myself all day."
LeBron is a freak of nature. That kind of speed coupled with that kind of body and athleticism has never been seen in the NBA. LaVar is absolutely no match for the 3 time NBA Champion.
1.) "I would kill Michael Jordan One-on-One
Yeah, you heard it right. If you thought LaVar beating LeBron was unbelievable, he takes is a step further. This is easily the most outlandish comment that LaVar Ball has ever spoken out of his mouth, yet.
“Back in my heyday, I would kill Michael Jordan one-on-one.” (via Josh Peters, USA Today)
Not only did he openly state that the GOAT would be no match for him, but he also layed out the blueprint of how he was going to beat him:
“I would just back in and lift him off the ground and call a foul every time he fouls me when I do a jump hook to the right or the left. He cannot stop me one-on-one. He better make every shot’ cause he can’t go around me. He’s not fast enough. And he can only make so many shots outside before I make every bucket under the rim.”
For those of you who think LaVar’s claim is blasphemous, let us tell you his prolific basketball background. He played 26 games at Washington State during the 1987-88 season, averaging eye-poping 2.2 points and 2.3 rebound per game. Just to remind, ‘his airness’ during that year was averaging a sub-par 31.2 points, 5.3 assists, 4.9 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.4 blocks per game. Still think LaVar cannot beat Jordan one-on-one? For those of you who haven’t seen the self-proclaimed GOAT in action, it isn’t pretty.
When word of this made its way to Jordan's ears, he had a great response:
"It doesn't deserve a response, but I'm going to give it to you because you asked the question. I don't think he could beat me if i was on one leg."
LaVar has had plenty of outrageous comments during his brief time in the spotlight, and there is undoubtedly more to come. But, he has set the bar pretty high with this one.
Guess the Lakers players!
