Ex-UCLA Star Guard Knew He Was NBA-Bound Since Middle School

Lonzo Ball knew he had been league bound way before high school

Coming out of Chino Hills, former UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball knew he was going to be in the NBA way before he reached his freshman year of high school.

In a recent appearance on Atlanta Hawks All-Star Trae Young's podcast The Point Pod (as recapped by Legion Hoops), Ball explained that in middle school he knew he was league bound. Scouts called him the best high school passer at any level while he was at Chino Hills. 

Lonzo Ball:

“When I first knew I could make the NBA was like 7th grade… my senior year was like a movie I mean when LaMelo came people were scoping tickets for hundreds of dollars. It was pretty wild.”

(via From The Point Pod, @TheTraeYoung) pic.twitter.com/MxaAdUDZbO

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) August 19, 2023

As a senior in high school, Ball had already been committed to UCLA for two years. Playing with both his brothers LaMelo and LiAngelo, he helped guide his Chino Hills team to a perfect 35-0 record. 

The hype of the Ball brothers had all basketball fans interested in what was happening in Southern California. 

Ball had all the hype of being a five star continue into college. In his one season at UCLA, Ball put up 14.6 points per game, six rebounds per game and seven assists per game. 

As a Pac-12 First Team player and the Pac-12 Freshman of the year in 2017, Ball continued riding the hype to fulfill his self-proclaimed prophecy of being an NBA player.

Ball was selected with the second pick of the 2017 to the Los Angeles Lakers. Injuries have derailed his career, but in his time with the Lakers, Pelicans and now the Bulls, Ball averaged a solid 11.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 6.2 assists. He has already been ruled out for the second straight season, following a third knee surgery.