WORDS IAN PIERNO // PORTRAITS ATIBA JEFFERSON++++++++++++++++++++++
LaMelo Ball is the youngest member of the ever-popular Ball family and the most-
watched high school basketball player of all time. (Hey, the numbers don’t lie.)
We kicked it with him and his pops in their sprawling Chino Hills mansion to learn
about what the future holds for the 17-year-old sensation.THE
FUTURE
ISSUEI
T’S NOT HARD to find
the Ball Family Estate in
Chino Hills.
Forget checking for
address numbers—the first
thing you’ll see is the giant
Big Baller Brand logo
fixated above the towering front doors.
If you somehow miss that, no worries,
the castle’s king wastes no time welcom-
ing his guests. There’s no need to ring
the doorbell—LaVar Ball struts onto the
driveway with his arms stretched wide,
voice booming throughout the luscious
green hills.
He knows how to host.
“This is the purest water in the world!”
LaVar says, as he pulls out a Lithua-
nian-imported Big Baller Brand water
bottle. “It’ll make your chest bigger. Don’t
believe me?”
Minutes later, the youngest heir to theBall Family throne emerges. There’s no
powerful introduction from LaMelo, just a
subtle “What’s good?” and a handshake.
It’d be hard to guess that this is the
17-year-old who’s become the most-
watched prep athlete of all time.
He has a 92-point game. He has his
own signature shoe. He played pro
basketball overseas at age 16. He scored
nearly 40 per game as the headliner in his
own league. He’s sold out dozens of
arenas on two different continents.
All of these are firsts for a high school-
aged hooper.
“C’mon, dawg,” LaVar says. “I’m not
surprised by what’s going on. This shit is
supposed to go on.”
The original plan was to follow in the
steps of Lonzo, his oldest brother, who
graduated from Chino Hills, played a year
at UCLA and was drafted No. 2 overall by
the Lakers.With LaMelo, though, LaVar decided it
was time for the family to take control
and start calling its own shots. It’s a
different path than what was originally
envisioned, but it’s a path with the same
end goal.
Since leaving Chino Hills before his
junior season, LaMelo has played for BC
Vytautas in Lithuania, the Los Angeles
Ballers (in the JBA), the JBA All-Star
Team that toured Europe and most
recently for SPIRE Institute, a prep
school in small-town Ohio.
He’s excelled at each stop.
“Melo does good anywhere,” LaVar
says. “Why? Yours truly is here. Me and
Melo could go to the moon together, man.
Melo knows I got him.”
LaMelo is a trailblazer, but he’s not
completely aware of his impact. Despite
being under the public spotlight since the
moment he played his first game for+++++++++++
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