Lonzo Ball disagreed with Patrick Beverley’s claim that a WNBA team can beat the bench players of an NBA squad if they played against each other. Ball issued his dissenting opinion when Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. brought up the topic during his recent appearance on Zo’s “Ball in the Family” podcast.
The Cleveland Cavaliers guard went even further — saying that even the 14- or 15-year-old version of himself wouldn’t have been stopped by WNBA players.
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“I mean this as respectfully as possible, but ninth-grade Lonzo Ball in the WNBA is going crazy. So, I would say after ninth grade, no. But before that… Cuz look, in ninth grade, I’m over six feet and I’m dunking. Like, I’m coming through like… No girl in the WNBA is doing that. I’m going back door, throw it up. I’m looking like Michael Jordan out there!” Ball boasted.
MPJ said eighth grade
Ball started playing basketball when he was only six years old. When he was 12, he told his dad that he wanted to play professionally, and LaVar began training him. Two years later, he was a starter on the Chino Hills High School varsity team and became an instant star.
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In a 2018 interview, Ball said he was bigger and faster than all the kids his age at the time. So, if he were over six feet tall back then, and the average height of WNBA players is six feet tall, Lonzo may have an argument.
However, Porter pushed the point even further by saying he would’ve held his own even as an eighth grader. He talked from personal experience, having grown up playing against his sisters, who both played college basketball at the University of Missouri, as well as other elite girls’ players who later reached the WNBA, including Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham.
“So, I have real-life experience,” said MPJ. “It’s just a difference, and I wish this would stop being a conversation because it should be common sense. I appreciate common sense. I feel sometimes that I’ve lost a little bit.”
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Williams feels the same way
Ball and Porter Jr. weren’t the first to boast that their high school versions would be better than WNBA players. Former Sacramento Kings guard Jason Williams was actually the first to rebuke Beverley for his claim and did so in his face during an episode of their “Hoopin’ N’ Hollerin” podcast.
“1994 DuPont High School in West Virginia would beat the WNBA All-Star team today,” Williams confidently declared. “What’s A’ja Wilson doing to J-Will on the court? If she gets 30, I’m getting 60… You know you’re talking about the girls’ best player ever? Belt to a-s, like you say… I’m willing to bet my life. I’ll bet my life… Ain’t no way.”
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It’s crazy to think that high schoolers can beat a team of trained professionals, even if it’s men versus women. After all, most eighth and ninth graders aren’t yet physically well-built and strong.
Then again, here’s what Ball looked like in the ninth grade, so that everyone can decide for themselves.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Nov 21, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
