Hype continues to build for tonight’s point guard duel between John Wall and Lonzo Ball in Los Angeles.
The All-Star says he will show the rookie “no mercy” in their first matchup.
As if the #Wizards-Lakers nationally televised matchup wasn’t already interesting enough… https://t.co/arKJHyFSDf
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) October 25, 2017
Ball’s Lakers teammates did not appreciate Wizards big man Marcin Gortat boasting that Wall would “torture” Lonzo.
Per the WaPo:
“Nah, no mercy,” Wall responded when asked if he would show leniency to the 19-year-old rookie point guard despite his braggadocious father.
“Certain matchups you really get up for. Like when you play [Golden State Warriors guard] Steph [Curry], you definitely want to have a good game,” Wall said. “I’m playing against [Ball]. [Gortat] said what he said about me. I didn’t say anything. His dad has been talking. … That makes me want to go out there and lead my team and play the best I can play.”
Last Thursday, the young Ball spent his NBA debut trying to play despite the fouling, jawing and downright hectoring from Los Angeles Clippers troll Patrick Beverley. As a veteran nuisance, Beverley explained away his bully tactics as a response to the “riffraff” created by LaVar Ball.
“His dad has gone on top of all that,” Wall said. “Forget what the media is saying. ‘This is what my son is.’ Which, I’m not knocking him. He’s hyping his son up but he’s already getting all that hype. … He’s just taking it to another level.
“We didn’t say nothing about him, nothing to him, and he says, ‘The Wizards better be ready because he don’t ever lose two in a row,’” Wall continued, then scoffed at the absurdity of the father’s boast. “Like, this is the league now. It’s a different ballgame.”
