Charles Barkley challenged Lonzo Ball’s father, LaVar, to a game of one-on-one during an interview with Mike & Mike.
LaVar Ball, father of UCLA’s standout freshman Lonzo Ball, has made headlines over the past several weeks for a series of outlandish claims, ranging from his son’s prospects in the NBA to his own skills on the court.
Charles Barkley, never one to back down from confrontation, made his feelings toward LaVar known during an interview on Mike & Mike. After a long, not inaccurate analysis of how bad a basketball player one must be to average, as LaVar did in college, two points a game, Barkley challenged Ball to a game of one-on-one:
"“I’m too old and fat to play basketball, but I would challenge Mr. Ball to a one-on-one … I don’t even know how old he is … he’s gotta be around my age, but ain’t no guy who averages two points per game can beat me one-on-one.”"
Barkley, an 11-time NBA All-Star and the league MVP in 1993, makes a compelling case.
LaVar claimed last week that, in his prime, he could beat Michael Jordan in a game of one-on-one. Barkley might be a little bit of a step down from His Airness, but he’s still, even at the age 54, got to be a formidable competitor. And he averaged a heck of a lot more than two points a game in college (14.8, to be exact).
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LaVar’s Jordan claim was one of several eye-catching comments of his over the past weeks. He also suggested his son, Lonzo, is better than Steph Curry. Lonzo’s impressed for UCLA this season, and is in contention to go first overall in this year’s draft, but Curry is the greatest shooter in the history of the sport.
I guess you can’t be too hard on a guy for believing in his children. Unless you’re Charles Barkley in a game of one-on-one.