Ball getting more used to drawing crowds
NEW YORK — Crowds of people swarmed Lonzo Ball and his family wherever they went, the first time Ball had experienced that kind of thing.
That happened in June when Ball visited New York City for the first time. He was there to attend the NBA draft.
His latest visit isn’t about him in the way that one was, but it has drawn the same type of excitement and attention.
On Sunday, with the Lakers off for the day, a crowd of thousands lined up outdoors in Manhattan to visit a pop-up shop for his family’s Big Baller Brand — to meet Lonzo, his brothers and their father, and to buy their merchandise.
“I got out of the car and I was like, wow, it’s cold out here, I wouldn’t stand out here,” Ball said. “They definitely did it. Everybody was calling my dad a legend. That was probably the funniest. Just yelling out the brand, saying LaVar’s my hero. … It was just the idea that started in the house in Chino Hills, the fact that it’s reached all the way out here and people are going crazy about, I didn’t see it. But I assume my dad did.”
Ball has been hearing the phrase “Big Baller” his entire life. That’s what everyone called his dad. Tacking on “Brand” to the name didn’t happen until a couple of years ago.
The family started creating clothing and other merchandise while Lonzo was at UCLA.
And while his trip to New York marked the first time that Ball saw how crazy the attention around him could get, it wasn’t until a family trip to Hawaii last summer that he saw the reach of the family’s brand.
“When we took that trip out there and everybody knew us and had the gear on and stuff, that’s kind of when my eyes finally opened,” Ball said. “… Every time we got off the plane, people were taking pictures in the terminal and everything, they had the gear on, every time we went out to go shoot some, everybody rocking it and stuff.
“It was a lot of Lakers fans out there as well.”
Because of that experience, Ball said he looked forward to seeing what kind of crowd would gather for the pop-up in New York.
“People are very strong and passionate out here,” he said.
Ready for the gauntlet
Facing the league’s top players tends to energize Brandon Ingram.
Perhaps that’s why he isn’t too concerned about the tough string of teams and star players the Lakers will face this month.
“We’re excited to go against some of the top players in this world, some of the top teams in this world,” Ingram said. “When we’re playing we know where we need to get, some of the things we need to do to get better and try to win games.
“What we look at for this December is the chance to get better, the chance to go against some of the top teams.”
In the next 11 days, every team the Lakers face will include at least one star player.
They’ll play the New York Knicks and big man Kristaps Porzingis on Tuesday, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday, the Golden State Warriors at Staples Center on Monday, then the Houston Rockets and the Warriors again.
As Ingram tells it, none of that intimidates him.
“When you come with that mind-set and you stay with that mind-set it kind of sets you back in the game,” he said. “You look at it like you give them too much respect . ... It’s my job and it’s my teammates’ job to go out there and compete to the best of our abilities.”
Scouting the Knicks
Lakers coach Luke Walton got to sleep in Sunday, a day off for the Lakers in the middle of a long trip. But he still spent a lot of his day watching film of the Knicks.
“I think Jarrett Jack brings a lot to their team and I have known him for a while and he is a great point guard as far as the way he brings confidence and the way he leads a group,” Walton said. “You get him out there with some of the talent they have, obviously they went on a big streak earlier this year and struggled with some injuries but they are very capable of beating anybody. Should be a fun challenge for us.”
TONIGHT AT NEW YORK When: 4 PST. On the air: TV: Spectrum SportsNet, Spectrum Deportes, ESPN; Radio: 710, 1330. Update: The Knicks are 13-13 after defeating the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. They play much better at home than they do on the road. They’re 12-5 in Madison Square Garden.