New Orleans Pelicans: For Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox, It’s Personal

Lonzo Ball of the New Orleans Pelicans will always relish beating De’Aaron Fox.

When the New Orleans Pelicans take on the Sacramento Kings Thursday there will be one matchup that is sure to get attention: Lonzo Ball vs. De’Aaron Fox.

The two have been linked together since their time in the NCAA and are starting to form one of the most interesting personal rivalries in the game.

Let’s take a look at how all this started.

UCLA vs. Kentucky

The UCLA Bruins and Kentucky Wildcats have been long rivals as two of the most successful teams in college basketball.

This was no different when Lonzo Ball was playing for UCLA and Fox was playing for Kentucky.

They had a few epic battles and Fox got the best of both of them.

The two teams met in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament and Fox dropped 39 on Lonzo Ball, needing just 20 shots to set the all-time Freshman scoring record for the tournament.

This obviously didn’t sit well with Lonzo, who would get his revenge in the draft.

The 2017 Draft

Both Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox went high in the 2017 NBA Draft, with Lonzo being the second pick to the Lakers and Fox getting selected by the Kings three picks later.

Fox never forgot this slight, as he thinks he is better than Lonzo and that Ball was the beneficiary of a hype train because of his outspoken father.

The two players will always be connected and compared because of their draft position, and it is still too early to say who got the better player, though at this point, it’s looking like the Kings got the steal of the draft.

LaVar Ball Provides Motivation….For Fox

Lonzo Ball’s father has had plenty to say over the years, including saying that his then college son Lonzo was “already better than Stephen Curry.”

Fox said that this quote was one of the things that motivated him to play well against Lonzo in the tournament.

Fox’s dad also got in on the action, calling out LaVar and telling him to “look at the tape” after Fox beat Lonzo twice in college.

Luckily these two helicopter dads won’t be sitting next to each other for the game or there might be a brawl.

New Orleans Pelicans: How does Lonzo Ball stack up against Fox?

The Stats So Far

Lonzo Ball has been the better all-around player if you include rebounds, assists and steals, but Fox has been a better scorer, averaging 20.8 to go with 6.7 assists.

Lonzo has been more of a facilitator, averaging 12.1 points, 6.9 assists and 6.2 rebounds. Lonzo is also a better overall defender, so each player has an argument for who is best.

It really depends on what you like, but both players put up numbers on young, ascending teams that are sure to be in the playoff hunt for years to come.

The Last Matchup

Lonzo Ball and the New Orleans Pelicans got the better of Fox and the Kings in the last matchup, which was the first time Lonzo and Fox met in the NBA.

Lonzo ended the game with 24 points, 10 assists and six rebounds, while Fox had just 17 points , five assists and three boards.

Don’t think for a second that Lonzo doesn’t know this and isn’t looking forward to every game he gets to play against Fox.

The two players and teams will be rivals for years to come and Thursday we’ll get another chapter in their saga.

Let’s hope Lonzo Ball can continue getting revenge on De’Aaron Fox.