Report: Lonzo Ball to consider working out for Sixers

Last Tuesday, when the Los Angeles Lakers were awarded the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, it was the perfect scenario for former UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball.

Lonzo’s father LaVar has mentioned on many occasions that he wants his son to be drafted by the Lakers. It has even gotten to the point where Ball will not work out for any other teams. Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge recently said on a Boston sports radio station that Ball declined a workout with them.

However, Ball could be working out for another team in the top five of the draft. According to Chris B. Haynes of ESPN, Ball is considering working out for the Philadelphia 76ers before June’s draft.

This comes as a surprise as the Sixers own the third pick in the draft and every mock draft that you see has University of Washington point guard Markelle Fultz going to Boston and Ball to Los Angeles.

Haynes adds that league sources tell him that a final decision on the potential workout will come after Harrison Gaines, who is Ball’s agent and Sixers general manager Bryan Colangelo have had an extensive conversation regarding the identity of the team.

Adding Ball to the Sixers would be an eclectic mix as it would give them another ball handler to play with last year’s number one overall pick, Ben Simmons. The problem is, however, that all signs point to the Sixers making Simmons the primary ball handler.

Could Ball potentially play off the ball? That is a difficult question to answer. Despite being a dynamic point guard, Ball isn’t like Fultz, who could thrive playing off the ball. Ball, on the other hand, had the keys to the car a lot at UCLA.

Nevertheless, the Sixers think otherwise as according to Haynes, they believe Ball and Simmons could mesh at a high level.

This past season, Ball averaged 14.6 points, 7.6 assists, and 6.0 rebounds in 35.1 minutes per game. He also shot 55.1 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from three-point range.

It should be interesting to see if Ball does work out for the Sixers as the conversation between Gaines and Colangelo will happen soon.