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LaMelo Ball Once Quit Australian Basketball Due To A $24,000 Horse He Named After Himself

Samir Mehdi
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LaMelo Ball Once Quit Australian Basketball Due To A $24,000 Horse He Named After Himself

LaMelo Ball has been used to the spotlight ever since he was a freshman in high school. While at Chino Hills, he would play the role of starting point guard alongside his brothers, Liangelo and Lonzo, the latter of whom is a Chicago Bull. The widespread attention they received was generated from none other than Lavar Ball, their father. 

So, Melo isn’t someone who’s new to having a ton of attention be placed onto him. Not to mention the fact that his life is on full display for the world to watch every time his family starts filming their reality TV show ‘Ball in the Family’. 

With the fame of course, comes money. Ball is currently under his rookie scale contract but with the way he’s been playing, he’ll certainly get maxed out by the Charlotte Hornets. However, with how his life was prior to the NBA, the Ball family had quite a bit of wealth to their name, as evident by Melo’s extravagant purchases.

Also read: Michael Jordan’s Failure as $1.7 Billion Team’s Owner Escalates After Ja Morant’s Grizzlies Played on Christmas 

LaMelo Ball bought a horse for $24,000 

Instead of going the collegiate route like his two older brothers, LaMelo Ball packed his bags to be a part of the Australian basketball league, playing for the Illawarra Hawks during his tenure there. After showing out for a couple months, he would eventually shut himself down from playing to prep for the 2020 NBA Draft. 

After not playing for the Hawks for some time, he quit the league altogether. One of the biggest reasons for this was because of the fact that he had just purchased a horse that cost him a whopping $24,000. What’s even more fascinating is the fact that he named this horse of his, ‘LAMELO’ in all caps. 

It’s unclear if he bought this horse to ride it or to just have as an animal he now owns but either way, $24,000 is a ludicrous amount of money. Though, when you’re projected to go top 3 in the NBA Draft, is it really that big of a deal? 

LaMelo Ball has been playing good basketball since returning 

With LaMelo Ball finally back from his ankle injury, he’s proven himself to be the sole bright spot for the Charlotte Hornets. Expected to be a play-in team this season, it seems as though they’ve gone off the deep end and locked themselves into the Wemby sweepstakes. 

Ball, in the limited number of games he’s played this year has been putting up 23.3 points per game on 38% shooting from beyond while dishing out 8 assists a night. While he won’t be an All-Star for the most part due to the Hornets’ record, he’s certainly playing like one on most nights.

Also read: Despite $130,000 Bond, Miles Bridges Is Being Pursued By The Hornets Following Domestic Violence Charges

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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