LiAngelo Gets NBA Opportunity; Surviving With Pistons Won’t Be Easy

LiAngelo Ball was the only son of LaVar Ball looking to catch a break to play in the NBA.

After being left out in the 2018 NBA Draft, the 22-year-old will get his chance this 2020-21 season after the Detroit Pistons signed him to a one-year non-guaranteed contract.

It was Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium that first reported the Ball deal citing sources.

Until now, Ball has had no offers from NBA teams. He spent most of his time playing in various leagues across the United States. That included stints with the Los Angeles Ballers in the Junior Basketball Association which was founded by his father.

Ball tried to remain in the NBA circle, settling as a practice player with the Oklahoma City Blue in the G-League. However, he never got the chance to suit up for the squad after the season got canceled due to the current coronavirus pandemic.

It has been a tough couple of years for Ball. He started the 2017-18 season with UCLA but got involved in a shoplifting scandal when the varsity team went to China.

He was eventually suspended by UCLA and ended up leaving the school. He and his younger brother LaMelo opted to play for Prienai in the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL).

After learning that he was offered a deal by the Pistons, LaVar and his older sibling Lonzo reacted to the tweet by Charania.

Lonzo borrowed a familiar catchphrase from Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers, while LaVar said he was proud to see all of his sons playing this 2020-21 season.

The 6-foot-5 player gets the chance to prove his worth on a team that is in rebuild mode. After a dismal performance last season, the Pistons are hoping to break a playoff drought as they missed out nine times in the last 11 years.

The Pistons were quite busy in the offseason, taking in new players for the 2020-21 wars. They picked up Killian Hayes, Isaiah Stewart, Saddiq Bey and Saben Lee from the 2020 NBA Draft and acquired Grant, Delon Wright, Dzanan Musa and Rodney McGruder via trades per NBA.com.

In free agency, the Pistons tapped Mason Plumlee, Jahlil Okafor, Josh Jackson and Wayne Ellington. This is aside from mainstays Derrick Rose and Blake Griffin among others.

Ball will have his work cut out for him if he intends to remain with the Pistons for the full 2020-21 season.