LiAngelo Ball and LaMelo Ball Might Be Taking Their Talents to Lithuania [UPDATE}
LiAngelo Ball and LaMelo Ball have both dropped out of school — or been pulled out of school, if you prefer that terminology — and signed with an agent with the intent of playing professional basketball.
According to Woj, a deal could be imminent for them to play in Lithuania:
Story filed to ESPN with @DraftExpress: LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball are in serious discussions to sign professional basketball deals with Lithuanian club Prienu Vytautas. Club plans to decide in next 24-to-48 hours whether to finalize an agreement with the two American teenagers.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 11, 2017
According to Woj’s reporting partner Jonathan Givony, they are not expected to be centerpieces of their new team:
The Ball brothers are not expected to see major playing time for Prienu Vytautas in the Lithuanian (LKL) league, but could be afforded an opportunity to develop in the Baltic (BBL) League, where the stakes are much lower. The club must decide whether to pull the trigger first. https://t.co/XIihTVnZMD
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) December 11, 2017
In fact, they would potentially need to play for a month in order to afford a pair of Big Baller sneakers:
Prienu Vytautas has only had one American player on their roster in the past decade, Brad Tinsley, who departed after a month of action, according to my research. The Balls would likely be faced with a major culture shock in Prienai, a small village of around 10,000 people.
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) December 11, 2017
While it is a very serious question of how exactly this arrangement would beat playing at UCLA, it would certainly be some interesting reality show fodder.
UPDATE: The deal is done now:
Harrison Gaines, the agent for all three Ball Brothers, told ESPN that LiAngelo and LaMelo have signed a one-year deal with Lithuanian team Vytautas. Expected to head to Lithuania in early-January.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) December 11, 2017