Lonzo Ball UCLA’s highest NBA draft pick since 1979


It no longer has to be spoken into existence. Lonzo Ball has been drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers.

Anticipation that has been building since Ball’s banner season at UCLA – and spiked when NBA draft lottery netted the Lakers the No. 2 pick – finally delivered.

After the Philadelphia 76ers selected Washington’s Markelle Fultz with the No. 1 pick, the Lakers landed their point guard of the future.

“It’s a dream come true,” Ball told ESPN. “It’s crazy. I couldn’t ask for anything more and to be able to learn from (Magic Johnson) every day is truly a blessing.”

Ball, UCLA’s highest selection in the NBA draft since David Greenwood was the No. 2 pick in 1979, changed out of his black dress shoes into purple and gold Big Baller Brand shoes a few minutes before he was selected.

His famously outspoken father, LaVar Ball, emphatically reiterated that he predicted his oldest son would be drafted by the Lakers.

“I’m trying to tell you, I knew this was happening before it was happening,” LaVar Ball told ESPN while wearing a purple and gold BBB hat. “It’s a wonderful feeling, but I already knew it was coming to him.”

The Lakers seemed to officially clear the way for Ball’s arrival on Tuesday when they traded point guard D’Angelo Russell, the No. 2 selection in the 2015 draft, to the Brooklyn Nets.