Lonzo Ball's Family: All About the NBA Star's Parents and Siblings

Mar. 15, 2025

Lonzo Ball, LaMelo Ball, Tina Ball, LaVar Ball and LiAngelo Ball attend Melo Ball’s 16th Birthday.Photo: Joshua Blanchard/Getty

Lonzo Ballis not just a point guard for the Chicago Bulls — he’s also part of a basketball family dynasty.

Lonzo’s parents, LaVar and Tina Ball, were both college basketball players at Cal State Los Angeles in the late ’80s and early ’90s. After they married in 1997, LaVar had a dream to have sons who were all basketball superstars. He has been unapologetic and outspoken about this vision for his family since his sons — Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo — began to generate buzz on the basketball court in 2015.

“Speak it into existence,” LaVar toldESPN The Magazinein 2017 about his hoop dreams. “Keep talking about it until it happens.”

LaVar Ball, LaMelo Ball and LiAngelo Ball pose for a portrait with Lonzo Ball after being drafted number two overall to the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2017 NBA Draft on June 22, 2017.Jennifer Pottheiser/NBAE/Getty

Jennifer Pottheiser/NBAE/Getty

But despite the Ball boys' rise to success, family patriarch LaVar continues to raise his bar. In January 2021, the father-of-three toldThe Association on Foxthat he wanted to see all of his sons on the same NBA team.

“Nobody has ever built a franchise around a family,” LaVar said. “That’s why I’m saying, do something new. Build around the Ball boys and watch what happens.”

LaVar said he knew his kids would be basketball stars

Lonzo Ball family.LaMelo Ball Instagram

LaVar first met Tina when they were both student-athletes at Cal State Los Angeles. The former college basketball player has stated that it wasn’t just Tina’s good looks he was attracted to — it was her 6-foot stature.

“I keep telling people, I picked her for the genes,” LaVar joked to theOrange County Registerin 2017.

In another interview withUSA Today,LaVar elaborated, “When I first saw her walking down the hall, I just stopped and I said, ‘I don’t know what me and you are going to do together, but we’re going to do something.’ "

According to LaVar, that “something” was for him and Tina to have three sons — all of whom would become basketball stars. And after the couple wed in 1997, that’s exactly what they did.

“That’s why I married my wife … with the way I’m built, and the way she’s built, I knew I was going to have three killers,” LaVar toldCBS Sportsin 2015. “So this thing was planned long ago. Because I knew if you put two basketball players together, this is what you’re going to get.”

LaVar had a brief football career

Former Jets linebacker Marvin Jones recalled LaVar’s time on the team. “He was a very athletic guy and raw … I remember a very confident guy and, yes, he voiced his opinion and was cocky, but overall seemed like a great guy,” Jones told ESPN in 2017.

All three Ball brothers were UCLA recruits

LaMelo Ball, Liangelo Ball and Lonzo Ball attend the World Premiere Of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures “Avengers: Endgame”.Jon Kopaloff/Getty

Though Lonzo only spent one season at UCLA before heading to the NBA, his younger brothers followed in his footsteps. In April 2015, during his sophomore year of high school, LiAngelo committed to play at UCLA, according to theLos Angeles Times.

“Two down, one to go,” LaVar told the outlet.

The third, LaMelo, followed just months later: In August 2015, when he was just 13 years old, LaMelo verbally committed to play at UCLA along with his two older brothers,Sports Illustratedreported.

“It is my dream school,” LaMelo told theInland Valley Daily Bulletin. “I decided to get it out of the way now instead of waiting for the future.”

LaMelo, who wasdeemed ineligiblefor an NCAA scholarship after releasing a shoe with his family’s sports apparel brand, BBB, and hiring an agent, also retracted his verbal commitment to UCLA in December 2017. Days later, the two brothers signed to play professionally in Lithuania, theLos Angeles Timesreported.

LaMelo went viral in 2017 for scoring 92 points in a high school game

LaMelo Ball #1 of Chino Hills High School.Josh Lefkowitz/Getty

When LaMelo was a 15-year-old sophomore at Chino Hills High School, he earned national attention for scoring 92 points in a single game. The performance led Chino Hills to a 146-123 victory over Los Osos High school, according to theLos Angeles Times.

The BBB co-founder added: “This is nothing. He could do it on a daily basis. He loves the game … He’s only going to get better. He’s not trying to embarrass anybody. He only wants to be the best player, and he’s chasing his brothers.”

While the performance was impressive, it also drew some criticism from both local coaches and basketball legends. “You know, the kid was waiting at half court most of the game,“Charles Barkleysaid on ESPN Radio, perUSA Today. “Never went back on defense. So I had a problem with it, to be honest with you … I have a serious problem with that.”

Lonzo and LaMelo made NBA history

Lonzo Ball #2 of the Chicago Bulls moves against his brother LaMelo Ball #2 of the Charlotte Hornets.Jonathan Daniel/Getty

LaMelo has had a successful start in the NBA. He was namedRookie of the Yearin 2021 and was selected to the All-Star team the following year. In February 2023, LaMelo exited the season early afterfracturing his anklemidway through a game against the Detroit Pistons.

In January 2024,the point guard returnedto the court after a 20-game absence.

Tina had a stroke in February 2017

LaVar Ball and Tina Ball attend a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Detroit Pistons at Staples Center on October 31, 2017 in Los Angeles, California.Allen Berezovsky/Getty

In February 2017, Tina — who worked as a middle school athletic director — had a serious stroke that left her in the hospital for more than two months,ESPN The Magazinereported. Lonzo learned of his mother’s condition while at practice, where he received a text message from a relative.

LaVar, Lonzo and his brothers visited Tina in the evenings after practice while she recovered and the father-of-three encouraged his boys to keep their focus on basketball while he took care of Tina.

“Here’s what I tell my boys: ‘You all do what y’all do. I got your mama,’ " LaVar told the outlet.

Though Lonzo avoided speaking of his mother’s condition in post-game interviews, he gave an update toESPNin May 2017. “She can’t really talk right now,” Lonzo said. “But she definitely knows what we’re saying, and she smiles all the time. So that’s a good thing.”

“She’s tough, smart, pretty,” LaVar said of Tina. “I told my wife, ‘I been with you so long, you can have one eye drooped and your mouth over here like this and you’re still beautiful to me. I look at you the same way. That ain’t gonna never change.’ "

They had their own reality show

Lonzo, LaMelo, and LiAngelo Ball.Lonzo Ball Instagram

Tina spent the first season recovering from her stroke, and LiAngelo and LaMelo pursued their respective basketball careers.Ball in the Familyran for six seasons, concluding in the fall of 2020.

Lonzo and LiAngelo are fathers

Nikki Mudarris & LiAngelo Ball pregnancy photos credit @seancoleman713.@seancoleman713

In July 2018, Lonzo welcomed a daughter, Zoey Christina, with his longtime girlfriend Denise Garcia. His partner’s pregnancy and the couple’s deliberation over their infant’s name featured in the family’s reality show.

Years later, in July 2023, LiAngelohad his first child, a son named LaVelo, with Nikki Mudarris. When they announced the pregnancy in April 2023, LiAngelo told PEOPLE that his brothers were supportive of his next step.

“When I told my mom and pops they were shocked a little bit but I think more so excited than anything,” he said. “My mom was yelling and cheering in excitement. When I told my brothers theywere happy for meand also excited to become new uncles.”

source: people.com