Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball isn’t the only member of the family with a signature sneaker in the $400 price range. Now, his youngest brother, LaMelo — who is currently attending Chino Hills High School in Chino Hills, Calif. — has a shoe from Big Baller Brand.
Unveiled today is the Big Baller Brand Melo Ball 1 (also referred to by the brand as the MB1), which comes with a $395 price tag. The shoe is available now for preorder via bigballerbrand.com, and will ship to its buyers on Dec. 23.
The low-top sneaker, which Big Baller Brand declared is the first signature shoe for a high school basketball player, features a two-tone camouflage “Fly Knit” upper and a “full bed of shock absorbent material [that] makes the shoe one of the lightest basketball shoes on the market.”
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LaVar Ball — the outspoken father to Lonzo, LaMelo and UCLA freshman LiAngelo — made headlines throughout the year with his excessive monetary demands from today’s top athletic brands, before unveiling the Zo2 footwear collection in May. The line of shoes ranged in price from $220 for slides to $995 for the Zo2 sneaker autographed by Lonzo.
The elder ball spoke exclusively with Footwear News in May to state why he’s against shoe sponsorship deals and partnerships.
“Shoe companies are looking for guys that will represent their brand. Just imagine if everyone says, ‘I’m not doing this.’ Now what are they left with?” he explained. “They don’t want this ripple effect where folks say, ‘I don’t want an endorsement deal,’ or when they get one they say straight off the bat, ‘Where’s my signature shoe?’ You’ve got to go years before you get a signature shoe. Why? They give you a signature shoe when they feel like it.”
