LaVar's oldest son Lonzo starred at UCLA for a season and was picked No. 2 overall in the NBA Draft by the Lakers. LaVar is confident in Lonzo's abilities.
LaVar parlayed the comments into TV spots for ESPN and Fox Sports One, where he continued to provoke reactions and garner even more media buzz. By Spring of 2017, ESPN.com had more than 75 pieces of digital content with LaVar Ball in the headline.
Ball: "Back in my heyday, I would kill Michael Jordan one-on-one" (Ball played one college season and averaged 2 points per game)
Trump: "I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me."
Ball: ...of the Chino Hills High School basketball program, where LaVar's two younger sons LiAngelo (18) and LaMelo (16) played last season. LaVar undermined coach Chris Gilling during games by yelling instructions to counter Gilling's strategies. He also refused to leave the team locker room when asked, criticized Gilling incessantly, and Gilling got canned at season's end.
Trump:
Ball: UCLA will win the National Championship. (They lost in the Sweet 16)
Trump:
- "We're going to build the wall, and Mexico is going to pay for it."
- "At the end of four years, I guarantee you that I will get over 95 percent of the African-American vote."
- The GOP health care plan will cover pre-existing conditions.
Ball: As leverage against major shoe companies like Nike and Under Armour, LaVar created Big Baller Brand. Lonzo has his own shoe — the $495 ZO2s — before even joining a professional team.
Trump: Brandished a table of Trump-branded food and drink for a press conference last March.
Ball: "If Charles (Barkley) thought like me, maybe he'd win a championship." ... “I know he don't want to play one-on-one because he's too big. He'd better stay behind at TNT and eat them doughnuts."
Trump:
Ball: "I don't need no advice from Kobe Bryant."
Trump: "Regardless of recommendation, I was going to fire Comey."
Editor's Note: This story was first published in May. It was updated on November 20th to incorporate the Trump/Ball spat.
