Lonzo Ball believes he was made to be a scapegoat when he addressed his unceremonious exit from the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. During the trade deadline earlier this month, the former second overall pick was traded to the Utah Jazz before being waived, making him a free agent.
Before this, Ball played 35 regular season games (three starts) for the Cleveland Cavaliers this year, averaging 4.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.3 steals on a paltry 30.1 percent shooting from the field and 27.2 percent shooting from three-point land – the worst mark of his career.
“I don’t feel like I’m playing as bad as people are saying,” Ball stated on the Ball in the Family podcast. “I’m the scapegoat right now, but that comes with the name, and that’s what they brought me in for. I’m not gonna say I’m playing great, but, to me, I’m just missing shots.”
“People are like, ‘Oh, he’s shooting 25%,’ and it’s like, let’s take those percentages and talk about what that is. That’s four shots a game, and I’m making one. Shitty, but I promise we’re not winning or losing games based on four shots. Can I play better? Yes. Have I been playing terribly? I don’t think I have,” he reiterated.
Cleveland Cavaliers News: Donovan Mitchell reflects on having James Harden as a teammate
The Cleveland Cavaliers completely retooled their backcourt during the trade deadline. After acquiring Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder from the Sacramento Kings, they traded Darius Garland for James Harden, who has yet to lose with the Wine and Gold thus far.
“I never played with a guy like him. I never had a guy like that before. We’re not here to figure out who’s better. It’s how are we going to win? For him to say that he’s here to help me win is huge,” Mitchell said of Harden via Andscape.
“The goal is to get a championship… Obviously, we just acquired James (Harden), Dennis (Schröder) & Keon [Ellis], so use this break to go out there & be like ‘Hey, it’s time to go’ & get somewhere we haven’t been before. He’ll figure it out. We’ll figure it out. Just keep playing,” he continued.
