"Ball Daddy" father and son.
On the night james scored his 59th triple-double, he and "ball brother" Ranzo Ball chatted for a long time after the game. James tugged at the collar so that outsiders wouldn't hear what he said.
Perhaps, what James wants to guard against most is the "ball daddy".
"Ball is a very good young man", James never hides his appreciation for Ball, but at the same time he also admits that "Ball is really under a lot of pressure".
Much of the "pressure" in James's mouth is "attributed" to his unguarded father, Laval Bauer.
From the first day Ball entered the league, superstars including Jordan, James, Curry and Westbrook have "lost to Ball" or "surpassed by Ball" many times in the mouth of "Ball Daddy".
However, such a day may be able to stop for a while, because even the "ball daddy" his own home team, the Lakers, asked him to "stop such public criticism and speculation", and he began to shift the focus from the eldest son to the two sons who were about to play in Europe.
"Everything I do is for the sake of the children", "Ball Daddy" said of himself, but is he really helping his sons?
James tugged at the collar and chatted with Bauer, not letting outsiders hear what he said or giving the outside world a chance to read his lips.
The Lakers set a "ball daddy rule"
This season, when the "ball daddy" appeared in the sideline audience, the fans realized that the so-called "big mouths" of Cuban and Barkley were not worth mentioning in front of the "ball daddy".
"At my peak, I could beat Michael Jordan one-on-one." Looking at the entire league, the only person who dares to say such a sentence may be the "ball daddy" who played at Washington State University and averaged 2.2 points per game.
But such a passage is not the pinnacle of "Ball Daddy", and his praise for his eldest son Bauer is almost beyond everyone's tolerance range.
"Ball's $1 billion contract", "My son will surpass Curry in the future", "I don't know if Ball can beat James and Westbrook in a one-on-one game, but if he leads the team to play five against five, Ball will definitely beat them"...
Fans PS "Ball Daddy" vs Jordan.
The fancy "blowing baby" of "Ball Daddy" has been going on for several months, and Bauer's ups and downs on the court have also made "Ball Daddy" keep punching his face.
Interestingly, "Ball Daddy" doesn't care about this, because in his opinion, Ball didn't do as expected, because the Lakers' coaches and players are "pig teammates."
"They were so weak that they didn't know how to teach my son." In an earlier interview with Bleacher Report, Daddy pointed the finger at the Lakers coaching staff and hinted that Ball's teammates didn't provide enough support.
The wild words of "Ball Daddy" finally broke the "bottom line" of the Lakers.
According to the US media ESPN, Lakers president "Magic" Johnson and general manager Pelinka invited "Ball Daddy" to an internal meeting, hoping that he could maintain a positive view when evaluating the Lakers.
Subsequently, the Lakers announced that all media would not be allowed to interview players' families, agents and friends in the family rest area after the game.
Many American netizens jokingly call it the "ball daddy rule" on social networks.
The Bauers.
Let the two sons drop out of school, is he really a good father?
Is "Ball Daddy" really better on the pitch for his son?
If his praise for his eldest son, LangZo, is still out of "love for his son"; then his decision to drop his other two sons from school to play in Europe is a bit elusive.
According to the Washington Post, Lenzo Bauer's second brother Leangillo Bohr and third brother Lamelo Pol have officially signed a one-year contract with Lithuanian basketball club Vytautas on the 15th.
Lyangelo, 19, and Lamelo, 16, will report to the team in early January to begin their European basketball careers.
In fact, both of Daddy's sons are still in school and play for their respective high school and college teams. However, two months ago, "Daddy Ball" asked his youngest son, Lamelo, to withdraw from high school; then, in early December, because Leangillo was suspended indefinitely by UCLA, "Daddy Ball" also helped his second son withdraw from school.
'If Leangello's skills are a little bit closer to James's and Lamelo's talent is as good as James's then, then I would applaud Laval's decision."
The whole family of "Ball Daddy" wears the BBB brand.
Jrry Bembry, a senior commentator at ESPN, believes that the biggest mistake of the "ball daddy" is to let two sons who have not proved their ability in American school basketball go to the "team basketball-focused" European adult league to play.
"I think they'll stick with it for a month at the most." One of the American college players who once played in Europe, Ben Brast, speculated. Many netizens in the United States have made bets on "how long can two Bauers hold out".
But "Ball Daddy" ignored the outside world as always, "I think this is a perfect plan." My son knows I will never take them down the wrong path. ”
For the "ball daddy", his expectation is still the same, "all three Ballers play for the Lakers, and then win the championship together."
However, in the view of another "big mouth" Barkley, every word and deed of "Ball Daddy" is for profit.
"Everyone is talking about him being a good father, but he's not, he's pitting his own kids. All Rava cares about is his brand, he's just trying to make money through his kids. ”
"Ball Emperor" also has the BBB logo printed on it.
Hype just for commercial gain?
On that TNT TV show, Buck used words like "exploitation" to comment on "Daddy Ball"'s behavior toward his three sons.
Is "Ball Daddy" really hyping up his career through his sons?
At least from the current situation, through the "efforts" of "Ball Daddy" in these months, his Big Baller Brand (hereinafter referred to as the BBB brand) seems to be more and more popular.
In the Lakers' visit to the New York Knicks, Ronzo Ball, who played 40 minutes, played satisfactorily, with 17 points, eight rebounds, six assists, and two steals. And "Daddy Ball" sat on the sidelines with his wife and two young sons to witness this scene.
Whenever Bauer gave a long pass assist that ran through the whole field, the "ball daddy" dressed in red and facing the BBB word on his chest would dance excitedly, and even turn around and encourage the audience behind him to cheer together.
Although the Lakers lost in the end, the "ball daddy" was in a good mood the whole time. According to the Washington Post, during the Lakers' trip to New York to play, the first BBB brand short-term fashion trend store of "Ball Daddy" has opened in Manhattan, New York.
"All that Laval is doing may just want to further promote his brand's signature sneakers through the spotlight." Jerry Bembry was so blunt in that article about Bauer and his two younger brothers.
However, the hype of "Daddy Ball" does not seem to have been ideal enough, after all, the performance of "Eye" Bauer in the new season is not satisfactory, and the other two sons who dropped out of school to play in Europe may not get too many opportunities.
In such a situation, the Bauer family's signature sneakers are naturally difficult for a large number of fans to be willing to pay.
According to the Washington Post, according to the calculations of the business valuation company, the BBB brand of "Ball Daddy" is now worth around $3 million to $4 million at most.
In terms of ESPN's assessment of "Ball Daddy," "If all Laval does is a perfect plan, we can only wish the Bauers good luck." ”