OKC Thunder: Will LiAngelo Ball ever play for the OKC Blue?
LiAngelo Ball singed with the OKC Blue just prior to the COVID-19 shutdown. Will he ever play for the OKC Blue or OKC Thunder?
The COVID-19 shutdown is playing havoc with the professional sporting leagues around the world. The OKC Thunder franchise, including the OKC Blue, has been impacted. They loaded up prior to the G-League playoffs and now the season may not restart.
LiAngelo Ball signing on just prior to the shutdown was huge news, now the question needs to be answered, will he even play for the franchise. He has been practicing with them for a while but the official signing was March 9th.
https://twitter.com/okcblue/status/1237036199770021892?s=20
With the season being suspended on March 12th, Ball did not have the opportunity to suit up for the Blue. Now there is a strong potential that the league will not restart this season given that COVID-19 is still out of control.
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Ball has played professionally overseas, appearing in 14 games, starting six of them. He averaged 12.6 points and 2.9 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per game. This shows that he is capable of mixing it with professionals which is a quality that the OKC Thunder seems to value.
The Thunder have a history of taking players who have played professionally. Terrance Ferguson played in Australia for a season before being drafted. Devon Hall also played in Australia for a season and his game grew. This season Scotty Hopson also played in the Australian league.
The Ball experiment was potentially going to have an impact on the OKC Thunder. Lonzo Ball has started his career well with the Los Angeles Lakers and now with the New Orleans Pelicans. LaMelo Ball is going to be a top draft pick in the 2020 NBA draft.
There was a good chance that the Thunder was going to trail Ball with the Blue to see if he could cut it at the top level.
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This may not happen now, depending on if they can keep the 6’5″ forward on the roster for next season.