Detroit Pistons Waive LiAngelo Ball After Just 2 Preseason Games

LiAngelo Ball is looking for a new NBA team. On Monday, the Detroit Pistons announced they have waived Ball, as well as Louis King and Anthony Lamb. Ball was signed by the Pistons earlier this month and only played in two preseason games.

Ball comes from a basketball family as his older brother, Lonzo Ball, was the second overall pick in the NBA Draft and is now a member of the New Orleans Pelicans. His younger brother, LaMelo Ball, was drafted No. 3 overall in this year’s NBA Draft by the Charlotte Hornets. LiAngelo Ball went undrafted in 2018 and spent time playing overseas. He then joined the Junior Basketball Association, a league founded by his father LaVar Ball, who had some things to say to the Pistons after they released LiAngelo.

“I definitely have thoughts on that,” LaVar said in a Bleacher Report AMA as reported by For the Win. “The people in Detroit are great. I love the fans, but the franchise over there is raggedy as hell. They don’t know a good player. I was giving them a lottery pick for free! Has the skills to play and the notoriety to bring everybody to the game.” LaVar went to say the Pistons will regret not keeping LiAngelo on the team.

“They’re gonna learn the hard way,” LaVar added. “My boys are gonna end up together playing somewhere. ‘Gelo can shoot the lights out. That was raggedy what they did. But hey, they’re gonna learn the hard way.” LiAngelo was a three-star recruit coming out of high school and joined UCLA in 2017. Before the team’s season opener against Georgia Tech in Shanghai, China, LiAngelo and two other freshman teammates were arrested in Hangzhou for allegedly stealing sunglasses for a Louis Vuitton store near the team hotel. He was suspended from the team indefinitely and then announced he was planning to withdraw from the school.

“We learned today of LiAngelo Ball’s intention to withdraw from UCLA,” UCLA coach Steve Alford said at the time via ESPN. “We respect the decision he and his family have made, and we wish him all the best in the future.” At the time, experts predicted that Ball would have a tough chance of making to the NBA even if he did play at UCLA.