LaMelo Ball is one of the biggest names heading into the NBA draft and many predict he could be taken within the first three picks. Instead of going the college route, Ball decided to play in Australia for the Illawarra Hawks of the NBL. While his season may have ended early due to an injury, he still fell in love with the league and the country he got to call home. According to ESPN, Ball, and his manager Jermaine Jackson have just finalized a deal to buy the team,
Yes, that's right, LaMelo Ball owns his very own NBL team. As Jackson explains, they made the decision after being told that the Hawks had some financial issues. Ball wants to see the team thrive and plans to implement the best employees possible to create a program that makes the fans in the city proud.
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“Melo loves the Illawarra fans,” Jackson said. “He loves that community. They opened their arms to him. They made us feel like we are at home. When we started hearing about the issues they were going through, we talked about it and decided, ‘Let’s own the team.’ He is going to be locked into his NBA career, but we are going to hire the right people to oversee everything. He wants to create the best basketball program possible for that community there.”
This is a huge move considering Ball has yet to play a single game in the NBA. When you already own a team at such a young age, it's proof that you have an entrepreneurial spirit and it will be interesting to see what he does with his newfound purchase.
[Via]