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Los Angeles Lakers legend and former president of basketball operations Magic Johnson drafted Lonzo Ball in 2017. He still lauds Ball's basketball acumen.
Magic claimed Ball has the highest basketball IQ of any point guard in the game during an appearance on ESPN's “First Take.”
"There's no point guard in this league whose basketball IQ is higher than Lonzo Ball."
—@MagicJohnson on @FirstTake pic.twitter.com/LcLcSwcFbE
— ESPN (@espn) March 23, 2021
Vintage reaction from Stephen A. Smith.
Now, Lonzo's Lakers tenure never panned out. He struggled to develop his perimeter jumper and dealt with a number of injuries. But Ball has always displayed tremendous court vision and playmaking ability.
Ball averaged 7.2 assists and 6.9 rebounds in his rookie season. He averaged 7.0 assists in his first campaign with the New Orleans Pelicans last season.
However, the numbers only tell so much. Ball moves and cuts without the ball. He is tremendous to watch in transition. Just look back at some of the half-court lobs he threw to Zion Williamson last season. The former UCLA star is clearly capable of finding teammates and making the right basketball play.
That IQ is likely one of the reasons Ball is considered one of the more high-profile trade assets ahead of Thursday's deadline and why teams have shown much interest in the former Lakers point guard.
The shooting gains are also helping his stock quite a bit. Ball is shooting 38.5 percent from beyond the arc on 7.8 attempts per game this season after shooting a career-high 37.5 percent from deep during the 2019-20 campaign.
Will the Pelicans move Ball before Thursday? He has been the subject of trade rumors practically since January and will be a restricted free agent this summer. However, Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer reported New Orleans is less “motivated” to move Ball.
Magic seems to feel Ball is worth quite a bit given his IQ or upside. Whether a suitor agrees and pays a large price remains to be seen.
