It’s been nearly a decade since Lonzo Ball, high school phenom turned UCLA standout, made his NBA debut for the Los Angeles Lakers.
His father LaVar, alongside Alan Foster, founded the Big Baller Brand apparel and shoe company the year prior. One of the early flagship products made by the company was the Zo2, Lonzo’s very own on-court signature shoe.
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Naturally, Lonzo wore the Zo2 sneakers to start his career with the Lakers in 2017. Now almost a decade later, he recently appeared on a joint episode of Ball in the Family and the BAHA Podcast and said the Lakers raised injury concerns regarding the shoe.
“(A team member) called me in the office and called him (Lonzo’s manager Darren Moore) into the office too, played a video,” Ball said. “They were like, ‘Bro, look at this sh-t.’ And it was like my shoe was already turning before like I hit the ground type sh-t like you can’t wear these no more.”
Lonzo also explained the he didn’t exactly want to wear the shoe in the first place, but decided to anyways out of support for his father. Injury issues quickly arose and the Lakers stepped in to have him change his on-court sneakers.
His NBA career has been hampered by injuries. Ankle issues arose in the early years but serious knee injuries have ravaged the last several seasons.
After two seasons with the Lakers, Lonzo spent two seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans, four with the Chicago Bulls and one with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs traded him to the Utah Jazz in February and he was waived almost immediately. He currently remains an unsigned free agent.
James Parker is a sports writer for Ball Exclusives, follow him on X @TheJames_Parker
