LiAngelo Ball On Fire In G League Debut

 

That "other" Ball brother took a big step toward his dream of an NBA job Friday night, in his G League debut. 

On opening night for the Greensboro Hornets, affiliate of younger brother LaMelo's Charlotte Hornets, LiAngelo balled out for 22 points in 24 minutes off the bench. 

LiAngelo Ball went CRAZY in his debut with the @greensboroswarm

22 pts (9-13 fg) in 24 min off the bench pic.twitter.com/bRlbao0fZn

— NBA G League (@nbagleague) November 6, 2021

Ball shot 9-of-13 from the field, and connected on 4-of-7 from three-point land, including a long-range bomb for his first official points in the G League. He was also a plus-12, in a game his team lost by 11 points.

On the parent Charlotte squad, brother LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier and James Bouknight are set in the backcourt, but if LiAngelo continues to play like that, he could win a spot due to injuries or other circumstances, such as a two-way contract opening up. 

LiAngelo did play professionally in the 2019 season, in the Lithuanian Basketball League (like bro LaMelo had earlier), and posted 12.9 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. 

The NBA's Hornets must have liked what they saw from the 6-foot-5 guard on their Summer League team, and selected him with the 14th pick in the G League Draft a few weeks ago. 

LiAngelo went undrafted in the 2018 NBA Draft, while both of his brothers, Lonzo (currently with the Chicago Bulls) and LaMelo (Hornets) were Top 3 picks in their draft years. LaMelo is the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year. 

Photo Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports