LaMelo Ball’s often-discussed future after Spire Institute has been the cause for much debate. While the Ball family claims he’s still eligible for Division I basketball, every sign puts to the opposite being the case and an unorthodox path needing to be taken for him to reach the NBA.
The branch that serves as a lifeline for Ball and his family has long been the G League and their new Select Contracts, which will start in the 2019-20 season. The likely short-lived program will give select prospects larger, $125,000 contracts for one season before that player enters the NBA Draft.
Seen as an alternative to college basketball, and considered by some to be a response from the NCAA to the Junior Basketball Association (JBA), the timing of the program could be a lifesaver for Ball, who seems like the perfect candidate.
In the most recent episode of The Woj Pod with Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN draft analyst Jonathan Givony mentioned Ball as a potential option for the Select Contract.
Woj: “I think the NBA’s hope is — Rod Strickland is one of the people helping to run this program identity players — they hope there might be three or four, and it could be players who … it could be a guy who, academically, is having trouble getting eligible, it could be a guy that gets jammed up in one of these FBI investigations and has taken money and —”
Givony: “It could be a LaMelo Ball, who’s not eligible amateurism wise to go to college.”
While the merits of Ball being a G League Select Contract have been discussed before, the interesting note here is Givony stating Ball is not eligible. The comment came so quickly and without much context or sourcing that it could mean a couple things. It could simply be an assumption based on the facts available, which all point to Ball being ineligible.
But given Givony’s connections with Division I programs, coaches and the NCAA, it could just as easily be information he’s gathered during his scouting trips. There are enough connections there that even this comment, mentioned in passing or not, should probably not be taken lightly.
Again, as has been the case all along, only time will tell us if Ball is eligible for NCAA basketball or if the G League, or another path, ends up being the route taken.
