Lakers news: Lonzo Ball ’sent a message’ with Rajon Rondo free agency signing – Woj
THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS used the signing of unrestricted free agent point guard Rajon Rondo to ‘send a message’ to Lonzo Ball, according to ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski.
It emerged earlier this week that Ball suffered a torn meniscus late in the season, requiring surgery to repair the damaged joint.
The former No 2 draft pick is expected to be declared fit in time for training camp later this year, however the timing of the news raised questions about how the information became public knowledge.
It had been suggested that Ball’s camp had leaked the news to the media in the hope of dissuading rival teams to trade for the 20-year-old.
Ball has been mooted as a potential trade chip in the Lakers’ pursuit of Spurs star Kawhi Leonard but the California native will be desperate to remain a part of the franchise given the arrival of LeBron James this week.
Shortly after news of Ball’s injury made its way online, the Lakers announced the signing of unrestricted free agent Rajon Rondo on a one-year $9m deal – a move Wojnarowski claimed was a thinly-veiled message to the Ball camp.
“This is a message to Lonzo Ball,” Woj said.
“His injury, that knee injury, there is a belief around the Lakers that it was within his world that got leaked out there to keep him from being traded. He does not want to be traded.
“It wasn’t the Lakers who wanted information out on that knee injury. There were a lot of teams who where checking on possible deals with the Lakers.
"There were a lot of questions about that knee. They [the Lakers] want winning veteran players. You have LeBron James now and he is 33 years old and, with Rondo on a one-year deal, they want win-now guys.
“Rondo is going to challenge Lonzo Ball. Lonzo Ball couldn’t stay on the court last year, there are questions about his fitness and the kind of shape he is in coming off a knee injury.
“They need him on the court so Rondo – you know how Rondo is going to compete and he will compete internally. I think it will make Lonzo Ball better to have Rondo around him, pushing him and mentally challenging him.
“There is not a more intelligent point guard in the league who understands schemes and tendencies of other players than Rajon Rondo – he is a genius level player.”