Thursday, October 5, 2017

Weasel of the Week: LaVar Ball

Yep, he's done it again.

America's most notorious sports parent, LaVar Ball, decided the other day to pull his youngest son, LaMelo, a junior at Chino Hills High in Los Angeles, out of school, less than a month into the school year, claiming he would home-school the youth while continuing to train him for his hoops career. Now, we know the real reason why.

Word has gotten out this afternoon that the elder Ball had tried to convince Chino Hills' new boys' varsity basketball coach, Dennis Latimore, the 3rd different coach in as many seasons, to put 4 of LaMelo's AAU teammates on the Chino Hills team. Essentially, he wanted Latimore to coach what amounted to his AAU team during the winter. Latimore, rightfully, would have none of that. The school principal also turned Ball down.

We get the deal. Ball isn't an accredited instructor in the school district, but he is obsessed with living vicariously through all three of his sons, realizing the success he never achieved decades ago. However, trying to play his shell game with school adminstrators and coaches isn't working, so, in effect, the Fred Sanford of high school parents is taking his Ball and going home.

When is he going to learn that one player doesn't always make a team? For every Michael Jordan or LeBron James, there are a few zillion kids who never make it to the NBA or other pro leagues for one reason or another, despite the fact that they're usually surrounded by the same glad handing leeches that follow James around like pampered puppies.

Maybe it's for the best that LaMelo isn't at Chino Hills now. Once the season starts, you could guarantee that ESPN, FS1 and even TNT would keep tabs on him, which is exactly what LaVar wants.

In upstate NY, we don't have overbearing stage parents in basketball or other sports. We don't play like that. LaVar Ball picks up another set of Weasel ears for his selfish act.

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