Report: LaMelo, LiAngelo Ball ‘In Serious Discussions’ To Sign With Lithuanian Club
Update (December 11): It’s official. Big Baller Brand is going worldwide.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Shams Charania, LaMelo and LiAngelo have signed one-year deals with Vytautas Prienai.
LaMelo, 16, and LiAngelo Ball, 19, agreed to deals with Vytautas that will allow the two prospects to start their careers in a competitive professional league with a history of producing NBA players and focus on development. Both will report to the team in early January, sources told Yahoo Sports.
NBA players Jonas Valanciunas, Aron Baynes, Donatas Motiejunas, Mindaugas Kuzminksas, and 2017 second-round pick Isaiah Hartenstein have all played in the same Lithuanian league.
Original Story: LaMelo and LiAngelo Ball have been hanging in limbo since they were pulled from Chino Hills HS and UCLA, respectively. The wait to see where they will play next could be over soon.
According to a report from Woj and DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony, the brothers are “in serious discussions” to sign deals with Lithuanian club Prienu Vytautas:
Story filed to ESPN with @DraftExpress: LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball are in serious discussions to sign professional basketball deals with Lithuanian club Prienu Vytautas. Club plans to decide in next 24-to-48 hours whether to finalize an agreement with the two American teenagers.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 11, 2017
According to Givony, Melo and Gelo likely wouldn’t see major playing time for the club in the Lithuanian League, but could develop in the lower level Baltic League and play either for free or for a low salary:
The Ball brothers are not expected to see major playing time for Prienu Vytautas in the Lithuanian (LKL) league, but could be afforded an opportunity to develop in the Baltic (BBL) League, where the stakes are much lower. The club must decide whether to pull the trigger first. https://t.co/XIihTVnZMD
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) December 11, 2017
The Ball brothers are not expected to see major playing time for Prienu Vytautas in the Lithuanian (LKL) league, but could be afforded an opportunity to develop in the Baltic (BBL) League, where the stakes are much lower. The club must decide whether to pull the trigger first. https://t.co/XIihTVnZMD
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) December 11, 2017
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