The father of UCLA superstar freshman Lonzo Ball, LaVar Ball, hasn't been shy about how good he thinks Lonzo currently is and will be in the NBA. It seems like a foregone conclusion that Lonzo will be entering the NBA Draft after his freshman season with the Bruins, and most NBA writers and analysts see Lonzo getting selected in the top-3.
However, Washington Huskies' star point guard Markelle Fultz has at the top of most mock drafts as the best floor general in the draft, but LaVar doesn't seem to agree with the hype surrounding Fultz.
Via ZagsBlog:
"If you got a kid that makes everybody better, you mean to tell me you wouldn't take him over a guy that's averaging 40 points but the team's losing?" LaVar asked. "If you wanna winner, you pick my boy."
LaVar also points out that UCLA made a big jump, record-wise, in Lonzo's first season with the team, while Fultz's Washington team lost a lot of games even though he was dominant individually.
LaVar didn't stop with just saying Lonzo was a better player than Fultz, though, as LaVar opined as to how Lonzo would fair against LeBron James and Russell Westbrook, too.
Via NBC Sports:
"To me Zo is the best player in the world," LaVar says. Yes, even better than all-stars LeBron James and Russell Westbrook. "I don't know if he can beat them one on one," Ball says, conceding the NBA stars are stronger than his son, the Pac-12 freshman of the year and an expected top pick in the upcoming NBA draft. "But I know he can beat them 5 on 5."
LaVar's comparisons of Fultz and Lonzo aren't really that outlandish, but claiming that Lonzo is a better basketball player than James and Westbrook is where things get way too over the top.