[AdamJCallejaParticipant]

 A lot of people probably avoided this thread just by seeing the name in the title and that pretty much sums up the hate people have towards this kid and the family. Many don’t even consider the thought of looking at him a prospect because of the family’s reputation. Living here in Southern California I’ve seen almost every one of Lamelo’s games and also have kept up with the live streams of the Lithuania games which has given me a much better measure of Lamelo’s potential and current profile as a prospect. 

Before breaking down his game, Lamelo is a young 16.5 years old, the age of most sophomores in the prep rankings (Lonzo was a sophomore at this age) leaving the optimism that he is nowhere near done growing and will get much stronger as he gets older.

 Offense

Strengths-A true talent on the offensive end, great ball handler with a solid burst of speed. Gets low on drives and will quickly turn the corner when given the angle to blow by his defender. Extremely shifty and can change speed and change direction easily for a prospect his age. Capable of scoring at all levels, soft touch on floaters complimenting his middle game, can get to the rim and is athletic enough to create with hanging layups. Despite unorthodox form, has a quick trigger and is willing to shoot from anywhere capable of making the long ball dribbling in either direction. Incredibly confident with the ball in his hands. His vision can be very high level at times, not as willing as Lonzo was at his age, but just as capable of seeing the floor as well as Lonzo when he is engaged as a passer.

 

Weaknesses-Unlike his two older brothers, can be clueless at times when moving without the ball: selfishness will take over at times and he will just run to the ball and demand it when it’s not in his hands. Shot selection has improved in Lithuania but can still be very poor at times. His MOST GLARING weakness- as talented of a guard he is-has no idea how to manage a game (so strange considering Lonzo’s game). He plays completely off instinct because of the way Lavar coaches. 

 

Defense -The most contreversial part of Lamelo’s game but he just really needs the right coaching.

 

Strengths-Long, quick and active (at times). Quick hands and good instincts when motivated. His time in Lithuania is the first time I’ve ever seen him play man defense because of the way Lavar/Chino Hills play-zone press and 2-3 zone in the halfcourt the entire game. What I have seen is that Lamelo is defenitely capable and knows basic rotations which was a major concern prior to Lithuania.

 

Weaknesses-All weaknesses on D are just due to his lack of effort. Although his effort has improved in Lithuania, he still has bad habits and can ridiculously be the last guy back on defense after a turnover or missed shot at times. 

Overall: A young and very talented yet raw product, basically a playground player right now. But, his vision, shooting and feel for the game are on par with Trae Young at the same age (sophomore in high school). What Lamelo has shown leaves plenty of optimism considering his youth and lack of true high level coaching and guidance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[The Scare Crow RisesParticipant]

He and LiAngelo are both decent enough players to collect a check from some desperate 2nd or 3rd Tier Euro/Asian Team, but they’d never get drafted/signed to an NBA team, Lavar has guaranteed them no team will touch either of them…They have to be Blacklisted at this point, the Lakers have to be having buyer’s remorse right now with Lonzo (who has quietly put up solid numbers in spite of the circus surrounding his Family) 

Lavar has already criticized wiz kid coach Luke Walton and the Laker front office in regards to how they chose to sit Lonzo in the 4th quarter of games

He’s pulled his sons from College and High School after one of them stole thousands of dollars worth of stuff while playing a game in China, burns his bridges with UCLA and the NCAA in the process, makes twitter enemies with President Gump for not thanking him and finally caps off his meltdown by signing both his "NBA prospect" sons to a 3rd Tier Lithuanian team…

They look average at best over there BTW, cherry picking and chucking 3’s while occasionally throwing up ugly floaters on 3rd tier Lithuanian scrubs is not going to put the Ball Bros on the NBA radar! I would bet Lavar’s gums burst out Bullshit before he gets either younger Ball brother signed/drafted to an NBA franchise, I think they’re a cancer to the sport and many NBA Big Wigs must feel the same the way…They hurt the bottom line, curtailing the system and profiting off the backs of 1 truly talented son and a rigged AAU/NCAA/NBA monopoly

He’s tricked alot of people into believing he’s relevant and influential ala The Kardashian Klan after the sextape, he’s trying to trick the world into supporting his lifestyle and feeding his ego and so far it’s working, the world is pushing back but we’ve got to get this fool as far away as the sport as humanly possible

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[whiteflashParticipant]

 He’s an unathletic chucker with bad habits, bad body language, and an awful father. He’ll make money for a bit due to society being f*ck!ng morons, then he’ll fade away. This thread is gross.

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

He’s hyperathletic scorer.  With the right coaching, he is 6’5”. With the right coaching and some discipline he has NBA potential.   

[OhCanada-Participant]

 He is not hyperathletic. He cant even dunk in a game 75% of the time.

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

He may not have ups but he can get to spots.   

[whiteflashParticipant]

 He "gets to spots" against third rate Lithuanians, and he does it with whiteness, not athleticism. Calling him "hyperathletic" might be the single worst and inaccurate description of all time.

[whiteflashParticipant]

 "Whiteness" was supposed to be "shiftyness". That was an odd autocorrect…

[Kwame33Participant]

 I think people(in basketball) often forget that athleticism isn’t just about jumping/dunking, but even still, he’s not hyper athletic lol. But he’s shifty and has coordination which is an awesome athletic attribute to have still.

[whiteflashParticipant]

 Good God people say some ridiculous sh!t around here.

[90sNYKParticipant]

to say that the Lakers are having buyers remorse is your opinion but I disagree. Lonzo has been exactly what hes been advertised and the Lakers see they have the pieces to build around in Lonzo, Kuzma and Ingram. Lonzo improves the Lakers and has them competing with all teams/ I really think that all the Ball boys are hard workers, with high iqs and a good support system. I would easily dump a first rounder maybe even lottery pick for Lamelo and I wouldnt mind reaching for Gelo in the late first or second depending on the temperature of the GMs. I dont see how you can fail drafting any of these guys and you could have something special if all 3 were to sign with the same team.

[whiteflashParticipant]

 If this isn’t a troll post, you need to get off this site and go to doctor IMMEDIATELY. 

[Ahkasi ClayParticipant]

 Delusional.  You must be a Lakers fan

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

Lavar? Is that you?

[OhCanada-Participant]

 Gelo wouldnt go late 2nd round in the G-League draft.

[SeattleSuperChronicsParticipant]

 Gelo will be playing this summer for the Lakers in the Vegas summer League. An 18 yr old Melo is a top PG prospect going into the league. All you have to do is mention the Ball family and the hate rains. 

[Andv1 WaitingParticipant]

 Gelo probably won’t get drafted unless its either for entertainment value or out of a favor to keep Lonzo happy(even then it would be a late 2nd rounder or via G-league) I could honestly see him playing overseas his entire professional career.

Lamelo is a little harder to pick though. Offensively he is showing he is a scoring SG/Combo guard he is not a P.G as that doesn’t come naturally to him.

Defensively he gambles a lot and he sort of reminds me of one of his favorite players: Harden at least defensively lol…

But on a more serious note: If he gets the right coach he has all the tools to be a nice prospect Good height,Reasonable speed with a solid handle,Reasonable shot,good wingspan all he needs is to at least be serviceable on the defensive end and you could argue he is going late 1st round at least.. He is showing he can play up and sort of reminds me of Brandon Jennings when he first came into the league and he went 10th overall in Stephs draft..

The only question though is this is it Lakers or Bust for him because that will dictate what he earns or where he may slide to in the draft..

 

 

[projectpat310Participant]

It’s been a long time since I posted on this site, but I saw a post about LaMelo and had to comment. First, he’s 16! Do you remember how much your body and game changed from 16-19? Let alone 16-24? To say this kid has zero shot at making the league is unfair and really shortsighted. I get the hate for his dad and family, but focus on his game compared to other 16 year olds. Let’s not cut a kid down because of some ill feelings towards his father. 

 

 

 

[Dog_ShammdogParticipant]

Looking at how fast Lamelo has developed physically the past couple years is promising.  He was just over 6′ not too long ago as a freshman for Chino Hills and now he’s a lanky 6’5" with room to grow and fill out.  I think him being the "latest bloomer" on top of being the youngest makes ppl judge him unfairly.  Lonzo’s been about as athletic as he is now since he was 16 but Lamelo, at 16, is just now coming into his own. 

The kid knows how to play even if he’s wreckless and unfocused/unmotivated at times.  Hopefully this changes in the next few years. The Vytautas coah said that Liangelo has been great in practice and has really helped to keep Lamelo focused and on the right trak in practice.  If he fills out and gets to Lonzo’s level athletically, I think he’ll have a very bright future.  

 

 

 

 

[CoachWyersParticipant]

 Lamelo will make the NBA he can shoot the shit out of the ball with deep range and every team needs shooters. He is a good playmaker although he needs to be reigned in because he is way too flashy/turnover prone and he plays no defense right now.  Is he a high lottery pick like Lonzo no, but he will get drafted in the late first round.  More Seth Curry than Steph Curry.

Don’t see anyway that Gelo makes the NBA (I mean he could get a look by someone because he is Lonzo’s brother, but not on his own merit) he is a tweener and not in a good way.

 

[GBeeParticipant]

 If by "shoot the shit out of the ball" you mean having the willingness to shoot from anywhere at anytime, then I agree.  If you’re implying that he’s some sort of deadeye shooter then I disagree.  Kid only shot 30% from 3 in HS A major part of being a good, efficient shooter is shot selection and his is horrible.  He has time to learn, but there is no empirical evidence that supports that Melo is a good shooter currently. He just shoots, A LOT and from anywhere whether they’re horrible shots or not.

[whiteflashParticipant]

 That’s the problem with judging someone’s game based off of YouTube highlights. You (meaning in general, not anyone specific) see these kids absolute best plays taken completely out of the context of an actual game and make judgements based off of those highlights, and it’s completely unrealistic. Like I wrote earlier, he’s an unathletic chucker with bad habits and bad body language if you’ve actually watched him play a game. If it weren’t for his father’s mouth NO ONE would know who he is. There’s nothing unique or special about his game. That’s not hating, it’s just the honest truth. 

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