Shortly after LeBron James signed with the Lakers, rumors that Los Angeles was shopping Lonzo Ball popped up online. But then news of Lonzo's torn meniscus, which will likely require surgery, emerged. The timing seemed too strange for it to be a coincidence, and one rumor indicated the Lakers believed Lonzo's camp—which wants him to stay in L.A.—leaked the news.
In an interview with TMZ at LAX, LaVar Ball, Lonzo's father, denied that rumor.
"I don't leak nothing," LaVar said. "I always say what's on my mind, so you don't never see me saying, 'I think I should say this now and let it leak.' I don't do that."
It does seem unlikely that LaVar would move behind the scenes like that—if there's anything he isn't, it's quiet. The man makes his opinions known. But that doesn't rule out other members of Ball's camp. It's certainly in the family's best interest to keep Lonzo nearby.
They may be able to rest easy anyway. It appears the Lakers have fallen behind in the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes. Kawhi previously made it clear he was interested in joining the Lakers, but his interests seem to have changed since LeBron joined the purple and gold.
He may now be more interested in joining the Clippers. Other teams to keep an eye on: the Raptors, who have emerged as the Vegas favorite to land Leonard, and the 76ers, who have plenty of assets to play with. But the Spurs are reportedly negotiating a bit too hard, repeatedly attempting to "up the ante" with Philadelphia.
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