When Lonzo Ball does anything, it becomes news. Unfortunately for the Lakers rookie, that's how it works when you're anointed the savior of one of the NBA's most storied franchises and your father constantly makes headlines. This time, though, Ball managed to draw attention for what he didn't do.
During Friday's game between the Suns and Lakers, a shoving match broke out after a confrontation between Kenatvious Caldwell-Pope and Tyler Ulis. Ball avoided the fracas and walked calmly toward LA's bench, telling reporters after the game, "People ain't really gonna fight. I ain't trying to get no technical."
Lakers-Suns getting chippy 👀 pic.twitter.com/eghvNqWfzO
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 18, 2017
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Ball took a few shots for not backing up his guys in the heat of the moment, but both Lakers coach Luke Walton and Ball's teammates remained steadfast in their support of the young point guard. Walton said a member of the team spoke to Ball on Saturday, and he downplayed the significance of the incident.
"I don't really care about how that looks because our guys love Zo," Walton said (via ESPN). "He's one of the few rookies I've ever seen that everybody is just kind of drawn toward him. Everyone really wants him to succeed. They all love playing with his group, whether it's practice or the game.
"I think they all know what that looked like isn't what Zo is about and isn't symbolizing what his feelings are on that type of situation. I know the general public and the internet world likes to do what they do."
Veteran center Brook Lopez felt Ball was making the smart move by removing himself from the situation.
"He was staying out of trouble," Lopez said. "I feel like I'm big enough where I can get in the middle of it. I'm not going to do anything crazy. I'm just trying to get everything under control."
The scuffle featured Caldwell-Pope, Lopez, Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma getting physical with Ulis, Devin Booker, T.J. Warren and Josh Jackson. Suns center Alex Len actually reached the bench before anyone else on the floor who was playing at the time, but his last name isn't Ball, so it went unnoticed.
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Kuzma put it all in perspective when it comes to how Ball is covered by media and talked about among NBA fans.
"He's my teammate and he's very misunderstood as a person," Kuzma said (via Harrison Faigen of Lakers Nation). "There's a lot of media out there and people that expect him to be something that he's not right now and that's okay because he's a rookie. He's going to be a great player in this league in the future. That may come in the next game or the next 20 games, or it might not happen for a few years, but I just don't like how the media portrays it."
"I mean if Lonzo tripped on this [pointing at a table leg] and fell down that'd be on ESPN... So I just don't like how it all is, but he handles it well and is a professional."
Ball has always shown he is about working on his craft and winning games, and he has earned respect from teammates going back to high school and his one year at UCLA. He's not the one in a troll-off with the President of the United States, after all.
However, the spotlight is on Ball at all times. His poor shooting, inconsistent play and calm demeanor have made him an easy target following the hype train LaVar was driving ahead of the 2017 NBA Draft.
The key here for Ball is having the support of the locker room. His teammates are still behind him, and that's what really matters when you're grinding through a long NBA season as a first-year player.
