By: Jerome Simpson (’19), Staff Writer
A year ago, March Madness was around the corner, college teams were building their resumes for tournament runs, and many had never heard of LaVar Ball or the Big Baller Brand. Today, this is quite a different story. Some love LaVar for his extreme confidence in himself, his sons and his business. Others see LaVar as a loudmouth parent poaching his son’s talents for his own personal success. The truth likely lies somewhere in the middle. But how did we get here? How did LaVar Ball and Big Baller Brand become such a hot topic? Let’s take a look back.
LaVar’s Timeline
“Lonzo is going to be better than Steph Curry”
Lavar started making big time news on social media platforms when he stated his oldest son, Lonzo Ball, would be better than Steph Curry. Curry is the FIRST unanimous National Basketball Association MVP, a multiple-time NBA Champion, is widely considered the best point guard in the league, and will most likely go down as the greatest shooter of all time. At the time of the comparison, Lonzo had barely played 30 college games, causing many of the first mouth dropping moments in the evolution of LaVar.
LaVar says he would beat MJ
In an interview with USA Today Lavar stated that he would beat Michael Jordan 1 on 1 in Michael’s Prime. Jordan never publicly responded to the comments, however, Lavar did what he needed to do; he kept the conversation buzzing about him and his sons. NBA greats across many platforms bashed Lavar for daring to make the claim he could beat the GOAT. For Lavar though, it was a win; he and his sons stayed in the spotlight.
“Stay in your lane”
Now this is probably LaVar’s most controversial moment to date. LaVar had the opportunity to go on Colin Cowherd’s “The Herd” for an interview. During one particular segment Cowherd’s co-worker, Kristine Leahy, attempted to ask LaVar a series of questions. LaVar never made eye contact with her during her phase of questioning and went on to tell her to “stay in your lane” when responding to her continued pressure, and there was an immediate firestorm on Twitter following this incident.
Now let’s add some context: Leahy, and others on a variety of different platforms previously ripped LaVar Ball over his parenting. Some loved the brash brand LaVar continued to exhibit. LaVar defenders stated that he had every right to respond to her in the manner he did because she (and others) crossed the line by commenting about his parenting style. Detractors stated his attitude and tone were sexist and that he would never treat a man with the same level of dismissiveness.
Today the plan to send his three sons to UCLA has been derailed by shoplifting incident involving his second oldest son LiAngelo Ball. Currently his other two sons, Lonzo and LaMelo, are playing professionally in Lithuania with little national media coverage. Lonzo’s career, like most rookie point guards, is off to a slow start. With his sons mostly out of the spotlight, the conversations surrounding the Ball family have dwindled. For now, the sports world will have to wait and see if a loud mouth dad and his talented sons have lived out their 15 minutes of fame, or, if this family can turn itself into an established basketball brand on and off the court.
