LaVar Ball recently appeared on VladTV and discussed how a certain miscommunication led to a severe nervous breakdown for his son, Lonzo Ball. While Lonzo was playing for UCLA, he received a call from his cousin, who informed the up-and-coming hooper that his mother was about to pass away. This prompted an instant emotional breakdown for the already distressed youngster.
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Lonzo Ball’s mental state was understandably in shambles when he heard the news. This comment caused a nervous breakdown for Lonzo, which eventually cost his college team the State Division game. LaVar Ball eventually revealed all of this to be a grave miscommunication and misunderstanding, assuring that Lonzo’s mother was doing fine after recovering from the stroke.
LaVar Ball reveals how a grave miscommunication caused Lonzo Ball a nervous breakdown
LaVar Ball recently sat down for an interview with DJ Vlad and opened up about some personal incidents in his life. Back when Lonzo was still a part of UCLA’s basketball team, the news of his mother’s stroke seemed to devastate him. However, LaVar managed to compose his son to play in the NCAA playoffs, assuring he would handle the situation.
Amidst such a tense environment, Lonzo received a call from his cousin, who informed him that his mother was about to die. LaVar Ball wanted to convey the news in a different way at a different time. However, that was not to be.
Ahead of a Sweet 16 game against Kentucky, Lonzo had a nervous breakdown that cost him the match. Explaining the situation, LaVar Ball said,
“One of his [Lonzo Ball’s] cousins, on Tina and them side, called Lonzo while he was at school and told him your mom’s about to die. I was going to tell him the same day because Melo and Angelo had a game, and Lonzo was coming to the game. And that’s when I was going to explain, ‘I just got out of surgery with your mom, she’s had a stroke, it’s going to be alright. She’ll be alright.’ That’s what I was going to give it to him like that, as opposed to hearing it. Because, Lonzo’s manager right now had told me, he said, ‘Man LaVar, he out here bawling. He can’t stop crying.'”
LaVar Ball indeed acted as a doting father, reassuring his sons about their mother’s health. Though Tina Ball had to undergo multiple surgeries, she returned home healthy after recovering from the stroke. As LaVar Ball explained, he believes such tests of time places blocks in front of people to see if they could keep going. Thankfully, the Ball family could overcome a tragedy, with all three of LaVar Ball’s sons making a decent name for themselves in the basketball world.
Lonzo Ball lost his Sweet 16 game against Kentucky after hearing the news about his mother
Lonzo Ball had a terrible game against the Kentucky Wildcats in the regional final of 2017. The nervous breakdown definitely cost him the match, given Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox outplayed Ball in the game. Fox scored a career-high 39 points in the game, compared to Lonzo Ball’s 10 points that fated night. Ultimately, the UCLA Bruins were defeated 86-75 by the Kentucky Wildcats, who grabbed a spot in the South Regional final.
Tina Ball’s recovery was heavily documented on the family’s Facebook series, ‘Ball in the Family.’ Much of the Ball family’s dynamics were shaken after Tina’s stroke in 2017. Though she recovered from the health crisis, Lonzo still remembers that situation as one of the toughest times of his life.
