Danny Ainge says Lonzo Ball won't work out for Celtics before NBA draft

Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said on Thursday that Lonzo Ball has informed the C’s he will not work out for them prior to the NBA draft.

“We just tried to get him in for a workout and he politely said no,” Ainge said on Sports Hub’s Toucher & Rich radio show.

The decision not to meet or work out for the Celtics is no surprise, considering the comments of Lonzo’s father, LaVar Ball, who has publicly said that Lonzo will not work out with any team besides the Los Angeles Lakers, who hold the No. 2 pick in next month’s draft.

“There’s nobody else that we need to work out for,” LaVar Ball said last week. Lonzo, on the other hand, has said in numerous interviews he’ll play wherever he lands. The difference on a guaranteed rookie wage contract between the No. 1 and No. 2 picks is $2,202,900, based on the collective bargaining agreement.

The Celtics are widely expected to take Washington point guard Markelle Fultz as the top overall pick, but Ainge said he’s not completely ruling out Ball just because he is bypassing a workout.

“It’s not ideal,” Ainge said. “Listen, we’ve drafted guys that wouldn’t come in for workouts before. It’s not the end of the world. We’ve watched them play a ton. We have a lot of information on them. Sometimes players don’t want to come in, not because they don’t like you, they see our roster. They think they would prefer to go to another team.”

Lakers president Magic Johnson said in a radio interview Wednesday the organization will work out Ball in the next few weeks. He added that Ball possesses the “talent, mindset and the basketball skills” the Lakers are looking for.

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