It has been clear for months that both LaVar and Lonzo Ball want the Los Angeles Lakers to draft the former UCLA star in the 2017 NBA Draft and, once the Lakers secured the No. 2 pick, that increased the chances of the marriage coming together. With that in mind, Lakers head coach Luke Walton is already on record in saying that his team will reach out to UCLA head coach Steve Alford and those around the Bruins program to check up on how LaVar Ball‘s personality could impact the team.
Now, though, it appears that Walton believes he is uniquely gifted with the understanding of such a large personality. In fact, Walton told TMZ Sports that his father, the always entertaining Bill Walton, prepared him for such an event.
“My dad’s got a big personality too,” Walton said. “So I’m used to that type of stuff. To me, I’m a fan of (Lonzo’s) game and the way that he plays.”
Bill Walton and LaVar Ball are two very different characters – which is something that the Lakers coach noted – but they are similar in that they will seemingly say just about anything in front of a microphone. It is perhaps more important that the younger Walton’s laid back persona fits in quite well with the younger generation of players and that always drew rave reviews when he was both an assistant and interim head coach of the Golden State Warriors.
The debate will continue as to whether LaVar’s off-court antics would be enough to dissuade any NBA team from drafting his extremely talented son. However, Luke Walton could be the perfect coach to deal with the full package.
