LiAngelo Ball works out with Warriors: ‘I feel like I'm ready'

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OAKLAND -- The second of the three breathlessly publicized Ball brothers worked out for the Warriors on Friday and did so in shoes unaffiliated with the family brand.

LiAngelo Ball wore Nikes.

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound forward nonetheless made it through nearly two hours of drills, joining five other draft hopefuls under the supervision of Warriors officials at the team’s Oakland facility.

The Warriors have one pick in next Thursday’s draft, 28th overall. Ball, 19, is considered a second-round pick, at best.

“I feel pretty good going into the draft,” Ball said. “I feel like I’m going to get drafted. I feel I could produce for a team.

“But if I don’t, then it’s going to be the G-League or just go as a free agent and join a Summer League team or something like that.”

Scouts consider Ball a better shooter than his older brother, Lonzo, who was drafted second overall by the Lakers last June. The third Ball brother, LaMelo, 16, is playing in the Junior Basketball Association, a creation of LaVar Ball, the bombastic family patriarch and proprietor of Big Baller Brand apparel.

LiAngelo Ball lasted one game at UCLA last year. He was suspended after a shoplifting arrest in China in November and withdrew from UCLA a month later.

He wound up, at the request of his father, playing professionally for Vytautas Prienu in Lithuania, where he averaged 12.6 points, with 41.5 percent shooting, in 14 games. The time in Europe, Ball says, served to enhance his overall game.

“It wouldn’t have been where I’m at right now, because going overseas helped more, in my opinion,” he said. “In college, I didn’t get the kind of playing time that I thought I’d get. When I went overseas, I was able to develop better.”

Ball concedes his ball-handling needs work. Scout like his shooting and athleticism but have found him indifferent about passing and defending. He has less than a week to make an impression before the draft on Thursday.

“I feel like I’m ready,” Ball said. “I’ve been training for this since a young age. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, so when the time comes I’m ready for it.”

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