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Report: Lakers concerned about toll of LaVar's behavior on Lonzo

Andrew D. Bernstein / National Basketball Association / Getty

If there's one true negative to LaVar Ball's antics, it's the fact that his 20-year-old son has to answer for some of them as an NBA rookie. And some in the Los Angeles Lakers organization are concerned about the toll that is taking on Lonzo Ball, according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

In LaVar's most disruptive stunt yet as far as the Lakers are concerned, he suggested over the weekend that the team has checked out on head coach Luke Walton. That ignited a firestorm of backlash against the senior Ball, while his son attempted to distance himself from the remarks.

A source told Shelburne that Lonzo is more concerned with improving as a player than getting involved in controversy manufactured by his father, something he's alluded to in the past.

"That is just his opinion," Ball said of LaVar's remarks Sunday, via the OC Register's Bill Oram. "(LaVar) has coached me his whole life. So, he is definitely going to have a strong opinion about it. That's just what it is."

Ball has been shooting better since the beginning of December after a rough start. His court vision remains strong, averaging seven assists per game.

The Lakers have already asked LaVar to tone down public criticism of Walton, and have tried to mitigate the media circus around him at the Staples Center by keeping reporters away from him.

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