Looks like the “ball” is in his sons’ court! LaVar Ball, father to NBA player Lonzo Ball and international player LaMelo Ball, has asked his sons for money to invest in the Big Baller Brand that he started several years ago, according to the New York Post.
On a recent episode of Ball in the Family, the Facebook Watch reality show that follows the lives of the Ball family, LaVar tried to encourage his sons to reinvest in the apparel company. “The more special you get, all these people will be coming in with all this other s–t because everybody want a piece,” he says in a clip. “What we got going on is gonna be a billion-dollar thing—everybody gotta put their teeth in it somewhere. And as a family, we just gotta stick together. Like, OK, we good. Put your money over there. My money over here … Melo over there. And we put all our money together, that’s where the venture capitalists come in and say, ‘We got a hundred mil’ for y’all.’ We don’t need to have a hundred mil’. We got it right here if we put our (sh–) together.”
Last year, due to discrepancies found during audits of Ball’s Big Baller Brand, co-founder Alan Foster was fired for allegedly embezzling funds. Back in March of 2019, Lonzo told ESPN that he believes Foster, a friend of LaVar’s for almost a decade who owns 16.3% of Big Baller Brand, had “used his access to my business and personal finances to enrich himself. As a result, I have decided to sever all ties with Alan, effective immediately.”
LaVar put out a statement at the time, “Unfortunately, Alan Foster continues to try and leverage the Ball family name for his own gain. Alan Foster is a convicted felon who served seven years in jail for defrauding people out of their money. He is a thief and con man and cannot be believed or trusted.”
Lonzo and LaMelo went public about separating themselves from the company while middle brother LiAngelo stayed with the brand. Lonzo, who played for the Los Angeles Lakers last season, is currently playing for the New Orleans Pelicans, while his brother LaMelo is expected to be a high NBA draft pick after the season. LiAngelo joined the Oklahoma City Blue, an NBA G League team, as a practice player in December.
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