Fans Reminisce on UCLA Guard as Pacers Make NBA Finals

Former UCLA Bruin Lonzo Ball is making nostalgic rounds as Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers make the NBA Finals with a similar style of play.

Mar 19, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Lonzo Ball (2) look on in game against the Cincinnati Bearcats during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

What could have been.

UCLA Bruins, NBA and Los Angeles Lakers fans alike are reminiscing on what former Bruin guard Lonzo Ball's career could have been after Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and his similar play style led his team to the NBA Finals.

Ball, a fast-paced, facilitating, two-way guard out of college, has had most of his NBA career derailed by inury. Drafted by the Lakers in 2017, the former Bruin was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans ahead of his third season for Anthony Davis.

The now-27-year-old was signed-and-traded to the Chicago Bulls in 2021, where he currently plays. Ball suffered a meniscus tear in January of his first season with Chicago and had three subsequent knee surgeries that delayed his recovery and made him miss the 2022-23 and 23-24 seasons.

Upon making his long-awaited return last season, he suffered a wrist injury that saw him miss 47 games. Despite all these major setbacks, Ball has solidified himself as a reputable point guard when healthy.

Lakers reporter for Clutch Points and SB Nation, Raj Chipalu, made rounds on X (formerly Twitter) for reflecting on what Ball's peak could have been reacting to Haliburton leading the Pacers to the NBA Finals, defeating the New York Knicks in six games in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Hali feels like what Lonzo at his peak could’ve been

— Raj C. (@RajChipalu) June 1, 2025

Ball was very polarizing coming out of Westwood, what with his father, LaVar, showcasing he and his brothers since rising to stardom at Chino Hills High School. Nevertheless, Ball had a unique style of play that led him to becoming the second overall pick in 2017.

His awkward looking jump shot often overshadowed a solid playmaking and defensive prowess. Lakers fans were maligned for refusing to believe that Ball was just some PR stunt and instead seeing potential in the young guard.

Once Ball left Los Angeles, his wings started to spread with the Pelicans and Bulls. Chicago, led by DeMar DeRozan and fellow UCLA alumni Zach LaVine, notoriously shot up the Eastern Conference standings early in the 2021-22 season before losing Ball for the rest of the season to injury.

Haliburton mirrors Ball's idealized potential; an awkward shooting form couped with fast-paced, decisive playmaking. Except, as Chipalu pointed out in a later X post, Indiana built their team around Haliburton and his style of play, and it paid off.

Indiana built a whole team around this https://t.co/jiQP4E1azS

— Raj C. (@RajChipalu) June 1, 2025

Though the Pacers are heavy underdogs against the juggernaut Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals, Haliburton, like Ball, has been underestimated his entire career, and keeps on surprising people, and has fans reflecting on what Ball's career could have been.

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