LaVar Ball: Lakers Are A 'Good Team', But 'Nobody Wants To Play' For Luke Walton
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Even from Lithuania, LaVar Ball says he can see what's wrong the Los Angeles Lakers: their coach.
In an interview with ESPN, Ball says the reason for the Lakers' recent nine-game losing streak is that the players "don't want to play" for Luke Walton.
You can see they're not playing for Luke no more," Ball said. "Luke doesn't have control of the team no more. They don't want to play for him."
Ball says any argument over the Lakers' roster is a nonstarter, adding that Walton is "too young".
"That's a good team," he said. "Nobody wants to play for [Walton}. I can see it. No high-fives when they come out of the game. People don't know why they're in the game.
"He ain't connecting with them anymore. You can look at every player, he's not connecting with not one player."
The basketball patriarch suggested Lonzo Ball, his eldest son and the Lakers starting point guard, is also growing frustrated with Walton after coming back from a sprained shoulder he suffered on Dec. 23.
"Lonzo looked good, but he also looked disgusted," Ball said. "He was ready to play. Four minutes left in the first quarter, he dunked it, getting in a flow and Coach sits him down. Sat him down. Now game goes from four points to 10 to 15 to 20. I don't know what they're doing. If he's ready to play, let him play. Don't try and monitor no minutes, put on restrictions."
Walton responded to the criticism from Ball, saying, "It's our job as coaches to coach our team and not be concerned with parents and what other people oustide the organization think."
Ball is in Birstonas, Lithuania, as younger sons LiAngelo and LaMelo, are set for their professional debuts with Lithuanian team Prienu Vytautas.