Lonzo Ball disputes LaVar Ball’s account of parents’ split, says mother was ‘damn near forced to leave’

The NBA guard said his mother’s departure was not voluntary, calling his father’s public account “not how it went down.”

Lonzo Ball is disputing his father’s version of events surrounding his parents’ separation, saying his mother Tina was “damn near forced to leave” LaVar Ball and that he personally helped her do so.

Lonzo’s response came Wednesday on the “Ball in the Family Podcast,” where Lonzo pushed back on LaVar’s claim last week that Tina simply “decided to go her own way” after 30 years of marriage.

“First and foremost, I wanna say I love both my parents, but the situation that is put before y’all is not how it went down. I’m not about to get into all the details, but long story short, my mom didn’t wanna leave. She was quote, unquote, damn near forced to leave. I helped her leave. I’m glad she left. She’s in a great spot,” shared Lonzo.

TheGrio reported on LaVar’s announcement of the split on June 25, when he revealed the news during a livestream with YouTuber N3on and said, “She wanna go do something else, that’s fine with me.” TheGrio also covered the news of LaVar’s foot amputation in February 2025, which came after years of health challenges for both LaVar and Tina, who suffered a stroke in 2017 that left her with aphasia affecting her speech and communication.

According to TMZ, which first reported on Lonzo’s comments, it is unclear whether Lonzo meant he helped his mother leave LaVar specifically or leave the family home in Chino Hills, California.

Lonzo did not hold back on his parents’ current dynamic. “They obviously don’t f—k with each other,” he said on the podcast, while adding that he loves both of his parents regardless of what happened between them.

Lonzo’s account contradicts LaVar’s framing of the situation almost entirely. LaVar had characterized the separation as mutual and Tina’s choice, saying he respected her decision even as he said she was no longer “beautiful” to him once she chose to leave. Tina has not made any public statement. LaMelo Ball and LiAngelo Ball have also not yet commented publicly, leaving Lonzo as the only one of the three brothers to weigh in on the split so far.