Ball, Tatum and Fultz are among rookies making their NBA debuts

MIAMI — If there was one takeaway from Lonzo Ball’s first training camp and preseason, it was this: He doesn’t sound like his dad.

There’s no humility in Ball’s game. The confidence of the Los Angeles Lakers’ rookie point guard is through the roof when he’s on the floor and with a ball in his hand. But when he speaks, when microphones are thrust near his face and the lights of cameras shine in his eyes and reporters pepper him with questions, there’s no bluster or bravado emanating.

Yes, even the most ballyhooed player in this highly regarded NBA rookie class knows that a learning process awaits over the next few months.

“The grind of the season, 82 games, I’ve never played that before,” Ball said. “It is my first year, so I don’t know what really to expect. But I’m going in there with an open mind, ready to learn, ready to get better and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

His dad, LaVar Ball, has made plenty of headlines with his sometimes over-the-top thoughts, plus has faced tons of criticism for things like slapping a $495 price tag on the infamous Big Baller Brand shoe that was released months before his son made his NBA debut. But Lonzo Ball speaks with humility, a calmness that helped convince the Lakers that he indeed was the right pick to be the rebuilding team’s point guard of the present and future.

“I’d like to just play,” Lonzo Ball said.

No. 1 pick Markelle Fultz will be part of Philadelphia’s young core that the 76ers hope get them back in the Eastern Conference playoff mix, No. 3 pick Jayson Tatum should be a big part of a Boston team that believes it can compete for a title, and No. 9 pick Dennis Smith Jr. — an absolute freak of an athlete, even by NBA standards — is already being mentioned as a star of the future in Dallas and a legitimate rookie of the year candidate this season. File, Ringo H.W. Chiu / AP

Los Angeles’ Lonzo Ball drives during an NBA preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. like Isaiah Thomas, Kevin Love, Marc Gasol and Al Horford all averaged less than 12 points as rookies. James Harden averaged 9.9, Mike Conley 9.4, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George were just under 8 points per game, Giannis Antetokounmpo was at 6.8, Kyle Lowry and Gordon Hayward didn’t even average 6 points and CJ McCollum barely averaged 5.