LaVar Ball said Luke Walton has lost control of the Lakers.
That put the coach under the microscope
It also put Lonzo Ball in the spotlight.
If all you value is publicity, that’s great. But the rookie point guard who’s still trying to adjust to the NBA faced some pointed questions.
Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times:Lonzo was asked if he likes having Walton as his coach.
“I’ll play for anybody,” he said, and later added: “My job is to play basketball. I don’t decide who coaches.”
That’s not exactly a ringing endorsement. It’s how players sometimes sound when they dislike their coach.
It also might be how players sound when they’re caught between a coach they like and a father who just threw that coach under the bus. Hard to say, though. There isn’t much precedent for that.
If Lonzo sticks with this approach, it’s fine. Controlling what he can control is a virtue. But he must stick with it. Once he praises Walton or any other future coach, Lonzo can’t credibly maintain such apathy about his coach. It’ll read as implied criticism.