Shortly after Lonzo Ball was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers, his father, LaVar Ball, said that Lonzo would lead the Lakers to the playoffs.
But coach Luke Walton isn’t looking that far ahead.
In fact, Walton said he’ll just be happy if Lonzo Ball can lead the Lakers to “a couple of Summer League victories” when he heard what the elder Ball said.
Luke Walton on LaVar Ball saying Lonzo Ball will lead the Lakers to the playoffs next season. pic.twitter.com/zPBrGKjiJ7
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) June 23, 2017
Walton’s approach is certainly a lot more diplomatic. The Lakers haven’t made the playoffs since 2013 and have been one of the NBA’s worst teams in the four subsequent seasons, never winning more than 27 games. So, they have a long way to go before the playoffs is realistic.
But that’s for the coach to say. If we’ve learned nothing else about LaVar Ball over the last several months, it’s that he doesn’t seem to worry about what’s diplomatic and realistic.