The Los Angeles Lakers and rookie guard Lonzo Ball defeated the Washington Wizards 102-99 in overtime. Wizards guard Bradley Beal led all scorers with 28 points to go along with six rebounds, four turnovers, and two assists. The real matchup of the night, however, was Wizards guard John Wall against Lonzo Ball.
Ball’s famous father, Lavar, gave his nightly rant after the Lakers lost to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday.
“Washington coming in here Wednesday? They better be worried, because Lonzo ain’t losing again. Not in the same week,” Lavar said after the Pelicans game.
Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat then responded on behalf of Wall to warn Ball himself.
man….. pleaseeeeee!!! @JohnWall will torture him for 48min 😂😂😂😂
— Marcin Gortat🇵🇱 (@MGortat) October 23, 2017
“Nah, no mercy,” Wall said when a reporter asked him about how he would play Ball after his father’s comment. “His dad has gone on top of all that. Forget what the media is saying. ‘This is what my son is.’ Which, I’m not knocking him.
He’s hyping his son up but he’s already getting all that hype. … He’s just taking it to another level.”
Wall ended the night with 18 points, nine assists, four turnovers, and three rebounds. Ball had 10 assists, eight rebounds, six points and one turnover. Ball also guarded Wall on the final possession of the game when Wall missed the potential game-tying three-pointer.
“They needed a three to win,” Ball said after the game. “So I was just going to ride him. He’s right-handed, so, I doubt he was going to shoot it with his left from the three-point line so I just stayed on his right hand. Just made sure when he got to the three not to foul him.”
Many fellow NBA players and critics said that Ball has a target on his back because of his father’s comments, but Ball said it’s nothing different than what he’s experienced his entire life. Last night, the Lakers won and, once again, so did Big Baller Brand.
