While their routes to the 2020 NBA Draft have been vastly different, draft classmates LaMelo Ball and Onyeka Okongwu’s paths have long been intertwined. Dating back even prior to their multiple seasons together at Chino Hills, Ball and Okongwu’s relationship on the court, which helped produce one state title, is only surpassed by their relationship away from the court.
The childhood friends are both set to be lottery picks in November’s draft, serving as the two NBA products from the unbeaten 2015-16 Chino Hills side. While Ball’s unusual path included stops all over the globe, Okongwu took a fair more traditional route, capping off his career with back-to-back state titles before a breakout one-and-done season at USC.
Still, despite all the success, Okongwu still hasn’t had a teammate or friend quite like Ball.
Onyeka Okongwu tells me his former teammate LaMelo Ball (@MELOD1P) is a "once-in-a-lifetime" player. The two prospects are both projected lottery picks. My interview with @BigO21_ is dropping on @hoopshype later this week!
Full quote: https://t.co/eCe5O4vDbs (via @LonzoWire) pic.twitter.com/cJva52zd3t
— Bryan Kalbrosky (@BryanKalbrosky) September 29, 2020
Here is what he told HoopsHype’s Bryan Kalbrosky during an interview that will be released later this week:
“He is confident and he is creative. I’ve never seen anyone as confident as him. He is tall, he is about 6-foot-7, pushing 6-foot-8. He can handle the ball and he can shoot. He just has it all. He is talented. He is a once-in-a-lifetime player. I’m telling people that he is going to amount to a star. He has been my friend since I was a little kid. We have been doing this for a long time. We have always told each other we were going to see each other in the league and it’s about to become a reality. I just keep telling people, Melo, he’s very talented”
While their playing careers diverted from one another, the friendship between the two never wavered. Both are a part of a text group along with the other members of the 2015-16 Chino Hills side.
After his season was cut short in Australia, Ball returned stateside and sat courtside at a USC-UCLA game to cheer on Okongwu. The duo also teamed up again last summer in the Drew League, where Ball had a breakout performance.
The two are unlikely to team up again in the NBA, at least not as rookies, considering both are projected lottery picks. But as they’ve already shown, that will have no effect on the bond they’ve created.
