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Lonzo Ball seeks redemption in second workout with Los Angeles Lakers

By Keir Chapman

Mar 17, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Lonzo Ball (2) prepares to shoot the ball against the Kent State Golden Flashes in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 17, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Lonzo Ball (2) prepares to shoot the ball against the Kent State Golden Flashes in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /
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After apparently faltering in his first workout with the Los Angeles Lakers, former Bruin Lonzo Ball has scheduled a second audition to showcase his playmaking abilities.

Lonzo Ball’s dream of playing for the Los Angeles Lakers seems to be slipping away. The fallout started with a less than stellar workout, where observers reported Ball looked out of shape.

The situation worsened when Los Angeles hosted fellow prospect Josh Jackson for a second workout on Tuesday. This came a day after rumors that the Lakers promised to pick Jackson, began to swirl.

The tidal wave of terrible news for Ball has prompted an about face to the once over-confident way he, and more so, Lavar Ball have approached the draft.

Related Story: Is Lonzo Ball not bound for the Los Angeles Lakers?

A new Father’s Day Footlocker commercial has Lonzo poking fun at his father’s boisterous behavior. The self-aware TV spot does a good job in humanizing Lavar’s actions, while distancing Lonzo from them in a likable way.

The biggest surprise to come out of these events is Lonzo scheduling a second workout with the Lakers on Friday. According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Lonzo will use these workouts to show his work ethic and training.

Clearly, the critiques of Lonzo’s first workout, whether or not they are true, has Ball’s camp concerned.

A second audition in Los Angeles will give him an opportunity to show off his playmaking. Amid all the negativity surrounding his first workout, the fact the Lakers focused more on Lonzo’s shooting than his passing, went underreported.

"Instead of playing against any prospects, Ball played two-on-two against some of the Lakers’ assistant coaches. Though his workout entailed various shooting drills, Ball did not have the chance to show other things, including how he operates out of the pick-and-roll."

Lonzo’s greatest strength is ball movement. At UCLA, he consistently gave his teammates easy scoring opportunities with his distributing ability and high basketball I.Q. These traits allowed him to lead the NCAA in assists with 7.6 per game, and post a 3.1 assist to turnover ratio.

Los Angeles needs a point guard that can create better looks for D’Angelo Russell and Brandon Ingram.

Lonzo perfectly fits this role, and needs to display the same prolific passing he demonstrated with the Bruins, in his second workout with the Lakers. This will allow them to feel more comfortable taking him second overall.

Next: An early preview of the Utah Utes

Lonzo remaining in Los Angeles once looked like a sure thing. Now that the stats quo has been challenged, he and Lavar have responded remarkably. The picture will become more clear after Friday’s workout. However, until the NBA Draft on June 22, speculation about how the Lakers use their second pick will be a storyline that will entertain NBA fans hungry for basketball news as the off-season begins.