LaVar Ball Banned From ESPN After Sexual Molly Qerim Comments

BYAlexander Cole81.9K Views
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LaVar Ball
A sad day for the Ball family patriarch.

LaVar Ball was on ESPN's First Take on Monday where he spoke about a bevy of issues, including his son Lonzo who was recently traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. He also predicted that his youngest son LaMelo would end up being the first overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft which is certainly an incredibly bold proclamation. Perhaps the most egregious thing LaVar said during his appearance was directed at the show's moderator, Molly Qerim. When Qerim went to change topics and "switch gears," Ball said she could "switch gears with [him] anytime," with left her cringing and feeling uncomfortable.

Since then, ESPN has stated that the comments were "inappropriate," while also showing support for their on-air talent. Today, journalist Richard Deitsch tweeted about a conversation he had with a spokesperson at ESPN who said they have "no plans" to have Ball make another appearance on the network. 

While LaVar hasn't been permanently banned from the network, it certainly appears like he won't be welcomed back at ESPN for the foreseeable future. Ball has been given platforms on other stations like FS1 so he won't have to worry too much about where he can go leech some fame off of next. 

As long as Ball continues to say ridiculous things about his sons, people will be interested. If he can't say those things through ESPN, he'll easily find another way to do it.


About The Author
Alexander Cole is the current editor-in-chief of HotNewHipHop. He started at HotNewHipHop back in 2018 where he began as a Sports and Sneakers writer. It was here where he began to hone his craft, putting his journalism degree from Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, to good use. Since that time, he has documented some of the biggest stories in the hip-hop world. From the Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef to the disturbing allegations against Diddy, Alex has helped HotNewHipHop navigate large-scale stories as they happen. In 2021, he went to the Bahamas for the Big 3's Championship Game. It was here where he got to interview legendary figures like Ice Cube, Clyde Drexler, and Stephen Jackson. He has also interviewed other superstar athletes such as Antonio Brown, Damian Lillard, and Paul Pierce. This is in addition to conversations with social media provocateurs like Jake Paul, and younger respected artists like Kaycyy, Lil Tecca, and Jeleel!
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