A source has sent exclusive new video to 407area.com that shows LaMelo Ball, 15, the youngest brother of Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball, making contact with a referee Friday at the Adidas Summer Championships in Las Vegas, Nevada.
You can see the exclusive video here.
The video, albeit blurry and with no sound, appears to show LaMelo slapping away the hand of the referee, who was trying to usher him out of a restricted spot on the court.
It earned LaMelo a technical foul.
This came moments after his father, LaVar Ball, the coach of the team, received a technical foul for arguing with a referee.
It just so happened that the referee who T'd up both LaMelo and LaVar was female.
After LaMelo's technical foul, that's when LaVar threw a tantrum and threatened to pull his team off the court.
LaVar wanted the female official removed from the game.
LaVar Ball asks for female official to be replaced after she gave him a technical. https://t.co/wPuXjlmPY5
— Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) July 28, 2017
Adidas officials interjected and replaced the female referee with a male referee.
The game would eventually resume.
But LaVar would only last another ten minutes or so.
A source said, after "yelling and cursing" at the replacement ref after what LaVar thought was a half court violation by the opposing team, he drew a second technical foul, resulting in an automatic ejection.
You can see that exclusive video here.
LaVar refused to leave the court, his team trailing 53-43.
Since he refused to leave, the referees decided to call the game.
It resulted in a forfeit for Ball's team, sending them to the loser's bracket.
After the game, LaVar went on a rant against the female referee, telling reporters, "She needs to stay in her lane because she ain't ready for this."
His sexist statements, along with the fact that Adidas caved to Ball's demands, drew the ire of the NBA Referee's Association.
1/ This appalling story about the female referee removed during an AAU game warrants serious discussion. https://t.co/vHl2NJrzwA
— NBA Referees (@OfficialNBARefs) July 30, 2017
Furthermore, the officiating group that supplied referees for the Summer Championship games in Las Vegas, terminated its five-year relationship with Adidas over the replacement of the female referee, according to ESPN.
On Saturday, LaMelo returned to action and scored 56 points in an 116-95 elimination loss.
David Baumann reports for 407area.com and can be heard on 96.9 The Game FM/740 The Game AM on EK Sports, Wednesdays from 7-9pm.
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