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10 Reasons why LaVar Ball Isn’t Going Away – Even with UCLA Loss

Written by Jeremy

Over the weekend, UCLA lost in the Elite Eight to the Kentucky Wildcats.

This of course spoils LaVar Ball’s prediction that his son Lonzo’s team would win the national title. It also feels like LaVar’s 15 minutes of fame are up since UCLA is out of the NCAA Tournament.

But on second thought, LaVar will likely continue grabbing headlines for the foreseeable future.

That said, here are 10 reasons why you should expect to see more on the world’s biggest stage dad.

1. He’s a Trending, Ratings Machine

As the New York Times points out, LaVar Ball’s appearance on ESPN’s First Take drew 480,000 viewers. The YouTube video of the interview (see below), which is only 3 days old, has over 800,000 views.

One could easily argue that this is because we’re at the height of LaVar-mania.

But the fact that a sports dad can command this kind of attention with one interview shows that LaVar is an interesting character, not just somebody experiencing 15 minutes of fame.

2. The 2017 NBA Draft is Coming Up

Lonzo Ball’s days at UCLA may be over, but his basketball career is just revving up. Predicted to go second overall in this summer’s NBA Draft, Lonzo will soon get to test his skills against the likes of Steph Curry and John Wall.

LaVar is already getting the pre-draft trash talk going early, saying that there’s no way anybody would take Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox over his son.

The issue has surfaced because Fox scored 39 points against Ball while outplaying him in Kentucky’s 86-75 victory.

3. Lonzo Figures to Have a Long NBA Career

Given that Lonzo is a 6’6″ point guard who’s drawing comparisons to Jason Kidd, there’s a strong chance that he’s going to have a long NBA career.

That said, LaVar Ball will have plenty more chances to say crazy things over the coming years.

4. LiAngelo Ball will Play at UCLA Next Year

LaVar will have a fresh new season to sit on the sidelines of UCLA games in 2017-2018. That’s because his son LiAngelo will be playing shooting guard for the Bruins next year.

There’s no guarantee that he’ll be as good as Lonzo. But LiAngelo does have a nice-looking jump shot and, at 6’5″, 220 pounds, can post smaller guards.

5. LaMelo Ball is a Junior in High School

LaMelo Ball made headlines in Feburary for scoring 92 points in a single game. At the time, he wasn’t a consensus top-100 recruit, but he’s now become a 5-star recruit who’s committed to UCLA.

That said, LaVar has a third boy who’s headed for prime-time college basketball.

6. LaVar’s Got Game…Okay, No, He Doesn’t. But He Still Gets Headlines

Video footage has surfaced of LaVar Ball playing in a Chino Hills, CA rec league. Any guy who steals prime-time basketball headlines for playing basketball this poorly has some staying power.

For the sake of being fair, he did beat Marcellus Wiley one-on-one. Oh wait, Wiley played pro football, and it was over a decade ago.

7. LaVar will Continue Building the Hype for Marketing Purposes

As ESPN points out, one reason why LaVar is making all of these headlines is to build his sons’ brand. He’s even floated the idea that he’ll only agree to a shoe contract for his boys through a $1 billion package deal.

If LaVar doesn’t get the $1 billion deal, then he’s more than happy to continue promoting his Big Baller Brand.

8. He’ll Soon be Back on ESPN’s First Take

Despite objections from certain ESPN personalities, First Take will be bringing back LaVar Ball in the near future. As you can see in the video from point #1, he had some energetic exchanges with Stephen A. Smith.

Don’t be surprised if Stephen A vs. LaVar Round 2 draws even more viewers.

9. He’s More than Involved in His Sons’ Basketball Careers

One reason why we definitely know that LaVar Ball isn’t going away is that he’s more involved than anybody with his sons’ teams. In fact, the New York Post wrote that he was yelling instructions to players and undermining Chino Hills High coach Stephan Gilling.

On a positive note, he did express support for Steve Alford returning to UCLA, rather than leaving for the Indiana job.

10. He’s the First of His Kind and Truly Original

We’ve seen plenty of stage dads over the years, including Shabazz Muhammad’s dad (Ron Holmes), Mary Pierce’s father (Jim Pierce), and Venus & Serena Williams’ dad (Richard Williams).

But no sports dad has ever received the kind of social media attention and screen time as LaVar Ball. He’s one of a kind and will remain a headline-generating force in the coming years.