Younger Ball brothers going pro
LaMelo and LiAngelo give up NCAA eligibility, and family hopes to find a team willing to sign both of them.
LiAngelo and LaMelo sign with an agent and could play overseas.
PHILADELPHIA — What has been presumed for months is official now. LaMelo Ball will not follow his brothers Lonzo and LiAngelo to UCLA.
LaMelo and LiAngelo hired agent Harrison Gaines, officially ending their NCAA eligibility. Gaines also represents Lonzo, the Lakers point guard. The Ball family is looking for a team willing to sign both brothers, and according to a person not authorized to speak publicly, they’ve received interest from teams in Europe and Asia.
“If they are over there, I wish them the best,” Lonzo Ball said. “And if they do go, it will be a family decision.”
The Ball family was in Philadelphia, where the Lakers played the 76ers on Thursday night. The Lakers will also play in Charlotte and New York on this trip. The family is planning a pop-up shop for its Big Baller Brand while in New York.
This news comes three days after LiAngelo withdrew from UCLA. The team had suspended him indefinitely following his arrest for shoplifting in China last month. No charges were filed against LiAngelo or teammates Cody Riley and Jalen Hill. Despite the shoplifting incident, there is no legal reason that would stop the brothers from playing in China. They have had some preliminary contact with teams there.
“I think it is a good decision,” Lonzo Ball said. “Talked about it as a family. We all came to an agreement that was the best thing for him . ... I have been at UCLA but I didn’t go through what he is going through. It is tough leaving whether he plays or not in their hands. You are just waiting to hear and just sitting around. So just trying to take action and that is what we did.”