Since LiAngelo Ball’s return to the United States after his shoplifting arrest in China, Donald Trump has demanded public gratitude from the three players involved in the crime. Although he received special thanks during a press conference after the players’ return, Trump continued to fish for compliments and praise for himself and the Chinese president.
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However, Ball’s father, Lavar, made it clear that he would not be feeding into Trump’s hype, despite anonymous sources revealing that Trump’s request for assistance from President Xi helped move the players’ process along.
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In an interview with ESPN’s Arash Markazi, Lavar downplayed the Celebrity-in-chief’s role in helping the players return home. “Who?” the CEO of Big Baller Brand said when asked about Trump’s involvement. “What was he over there for? Don’t tell me nothing. Everybody wants to make it seem like he helped me out.”
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“As long as my boy’s back here, I’m fine,” Ball continued. “I’m happy with how things were handled. A lot of people like to say a lot of things that they thought happened over there. Like I told him, ‘They try to make a big deal out of nothing sometimes.’ I’m from L.A. I’ve seen a lot worse things happen than a guy taking some glasses. My son has built up enough character that one bad decision doesn’t define him. Now if you can go back and say when he was 12-years-old he was shoplifting and stealing cars and going wild, then that’s a different thing.”
