Skip to content

LaVar: Lonzo 'disgusted' by Lakers' struggles

Christian Petersen / Getty Images Sport / Getty

While Lonzo Ball won't express it publicly, the Los Angeles Lakers rookie point guard is frustrated with the way his team is playing, according to his father.

"He's very disgusted but won't say anything because he's not used to losing like this," LaVar said of his 20-year-old son Wednesday on SiriusXM NBA Radio.

The Lakers have lost five straight games and sit 11th in the Western Conference. While they have the eighth-best defensive rating in the league, their offense ranks among the league's worst.

LaVar believes their woes can be fixed easily if "everybody would just drop their egos and just listen" to what he's saying, and called out the head coach specifically over his purported mismanagement of Lonzo's minutes.

"Luke Walton is doing what he's doing, just like playing Lonzo in and out," LaVar said. "Playing him a few minutes here, they wonder why his legs are sore. 'Cause they're running him a hundred miles per hour and then they shut him down for 10 minutes."

Related: LaVar says Lakers' media policy won't stop him from talking

LaVar added he doesn't understand why the No. 2 pick isn't starting fourth quarters and sometimes even spends the entire final frame on the bench.

Of course, it's not the first time the loquacious dad has criticized the Lakers, and specifically, Walton's decisions. He previously said the team was "soft" and didn't know how to coach Lonzo. More recently, he said Walton's decision to burn a timeout late against the Golden State Warriors cost Los Angeles the game and wasn't a "Big Baller move."

Lonzo is averaging 8.7 points while shooting just 31.3 percent from the field and 25 percent from deep, to go along with seven assists, 6.9 rebounds, and 1.3 steals in 32.9 minutes per game for the Lakers, who are on pace to miss the playoffs for the fifth straight year.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox