2020 NBA Draft: LaVar Ball wants Detroit Pistons to take LaMelo

LaVar Ball hopes the Detroit Pistons draft his son LaMelo Ball. A recent report says there is actually a small chance he might drop far enough in the draft for Detroit to get him at No. 7.

A few years ago, LaVar Ball orchestrated a campaign for the Los Angeles Lakers to draft his son, Lonzo Ball, with the No. 2 pick in the draft. His preferred destination for his latest son includes the Detroit Pistons.

Lonzo was a born and bred L.A. native and Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka (who still runs the Lakers) went for drafting the Hometown Hero. With Jayson Tatum sitting there, the Lakers took Ball instead.

Lonzo Ball never developed in Los Angeles and was dealt to New Orleans as part of the Anthony Davis trade. The Boston Celtics took Tatum at No. 3 and he is a budding superstar.

While Ball is not putting together a PR campaign for his younger son, LaMelo Ball, for this years draft; he has some definite opinions on where he would like him to end up.

And one of those favored landing spots is the Pistons.

As the Free Press’ Omari Sankofa II pointed out in a recent article, in a recent interview with The Pascal Show on YouTube, Ball said either the Pistons or the New York Knicks would be his preference.

"“I want him in either New York or Detroit,” Ball said. “Not in L.A., not right now. … The key is to have the right coach behind you. So when people ask me ‘Where do you want him to go?’, I want him to go anywhere, where a coach is going to believe in him.”"

Obviously, LaVar Ball seems to be a fan of Pistons coach Dwane Casey.

LaMelo Ball played last season professionally in Australia and, before that, Lithuania, while awaiting to become eligible for the NBA Draft.

LaMelo Ball might outdo his brother and get drafted No. 1. However, this year’s draft is very fluid, as most draft experts see no ‘sure things’ .

Ball is a 6-foot-8 skilled lead guard and, not surprisingly, he has a high basketball IQ. He would be perfect for a team looking to find an identity.

The latest Hoops Hype survey of mock drafts has LaMelo as the favorite to go No. 1.

The Pistons do not select until No. 7 (the Knicks, LaVar’s other favored team is No. 8). If LaMelo is going to be a top three selection, then the Pistons would have to initiate a trade to move up.

If Detroit really wants LaMelo (and we have no idea right now what their thinking is), dangling a promising young player like Luke Kennard, or a future first-round pick, might do the trick combined with No. 7.

In a draft with no dominant players, it is much easier to move up than normal. Pistons general manager Troy Weaver has said there is not much difference in terms of ability between picks No. 3 thru No. 14.

However, there is actually a slender chance that Ball might be there on the board at No. 7.

According to the Charlotte Observer’s Rick Bonnell in an interview on WFMZ, he has heard Ball is not knocking it out of the park in interviews with teams and might slip in the draft.

"“From what I hear from the league at large, LaMelo Ball is not performing well at job interviews,” said Bonnell. “He is not improving his perception via job interviews. There are people drafting later in the top 10, who were not preparing for the possibility of Ball being around … I am not saying he won’t be a top-three pick. I am saying that I know for a fact there are teams later in the top 10 who are doing more research on him because they no longer think it is a given he will (go in top three).”."

This latest report adds even more intrigue to the draft for the Pistons.

Does Detroit move up to take a big name like LaMelo Ball? Or does Weaver show patience and see if Ball falls into his lap at No. 7, without having to give away any assets.

Do the teams at the top of the draft like Minnesota, Golden State and the Charlotte Hornets care what LaVar Ball thinks? Probably not.

But if, somehow, LaMelo Ball ends up a Piston, the fact that his controversial father approves of the organization certainly would be a positive, particularly if they want to retain him after his rookie deal.