It really does suck to be the middle child.
After a few days of training camp and two preseason games, we’re down to two Ball brothers in the NBA.
According to James Edwards III of The Athletic, the Detroit Pistons have waived three players. Detroit will go without Louis King, Anthony Lamb, and, most notably, LiAngelo Ball of the Ball family.
LiAngelo did not get a chance to play in either preseason game due to an apparent ankle injury.
On December 2, Ball signed a one-year, non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 deal with the Pistons. The deal has financial incentives for players who sign with a team’s G League affiliate.
So what happens next? You guessed it. Ball will likely return to the G League. But it’s still unclear as to when exactly a G League season will begin or happen at all in the midst of a pandemic.
Ball signed with the Oklahoma City Blue last season. He will presumably play for the Grand Rapids Drive, the Pistons affiliate, this year.
Ball has also played professionally in the Lithuanian Basketball League and the Junior Basketball Association — another brilliant business enterprise founded by LaVar Ball, LiAngelo’s father.
This take from papa Ball didn’t age well either.
There won’t be three Ball brothers in the league this year. Even at 22, Gelo’s window is closing, and he has yet to play an NBA game.