After signing a non-guaranteed one-year contract with the Detroit Pistons prior to the start of training camp, 22-year-old wing LiAngelo Ball has already made a favorable impression on Pistons head coach Dwane Casey.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Casey described the second-born Ball brother as an “excellent player” and “great kid.”
While such generalities may be considered a tactful answer when asked about the son of media sensation LaVar Ball, LiAngelo has long-been considered to be a dangerous outside shooter.
Here’s a quick rundown:
At Chino Hills, ‘Gelo’ averaged 33.8 points per game as a senior, a higher scoring average than any player in the state of California. He then committed to UCLA — traditionally a highly-regarded basketball program — as a three-star recruit in 2017 before leaving to play for the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL).
While playing for the LKL’s Vytautas Prienu in 2017-18, Ball averaged 12.6 points per game (14 games) while shooting .415 from 3-point range.
Unsurprisingly, Ball went undrafted in 2018 due to off-the-court concerns and his limited on-court strengths. However, Ball joined his father’s short-lived semi-professional Junior Basketball League in 2018-19, earning All-Star and All-Star Game Co-MVP honors.
Appearing to be completely healed from an ankle surgery that prevented him from playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Summer League team last season, Ball has a chance to stick on a re-building Pistons team that needs three-point specialists.
From the looks of it, he’s already got off on the right foot.
