The NBA Draft Lottery is only a few weeks away with the top picks in the upcoming 2017 NBA Draft set to be determined on May 16. UCLA’s Lonzo Ball is expected to be selected in the first two to three picks, and many have wondered whether his outspoken and controversial father, LaVar Ball, has hurt his draft stock.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman, LaVar hasn’t been scaring away NBA teams with the draft less than two months away on June 22. Goodman claims he hasn’t spoken to an NBA general manager yet that would hesitate on taking the Bruins star:
@HPbasketball I have not had one NBA GM tell me they would hesitate drafting Lonzo due to his father.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) April 22, 2017
Of course, Lonzo has already made it clear that his preference is to be drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers, who at this point are simply hoping to keep their top-three protected pick. LaVar has done the rounds on talk shows and podcasts claiming all sorts of things and has mentioned the Lakers frequently.
Although Ball echoed his son’s desire to stay in Los Angeles and play for the Lakers, he did say it doesn’t matter who drafts Lonzo because he’ll play for any team in the league without a fuss.
After finishing the season with the third-worst record in the league at 26-56, the Lakers have a less than 50 percent chance of keeping their pick when the balls start bouncing on May 16 in the NBA Draft Lottery. Los Angeles’ odds of keeping their lottery pick stand at 46.9 percent and 15.6 percent of landing the top pick in the draft which they may need to get Ball.
The Brooklyn Nets, who will send their pick to the Boston Celtics regardless, have the best odds heading into the lottery. Brooklyn has a 25 percent chance of getting the No. 1 pick in the draft and 64.3 percent chance of picking in the top three. The Phoenix Suns are behind Brooklyn at 19.9 percent to get No. 1 and 55.8 percent to get a top-three selection.
