LaMelo Ball is coming to Northeast Ohio.
And if his new head coach has it his way, his stay in the Buckeye State won't be a short one.
On Tuesday, Ball -- the younger brother of Los Angeles Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball and youngest brother of the infamous Ball family -- revealed to SLAM Magazine that he'll spend the senior season of his high school career at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva. Although the 6-foot-7 point guard hasn't played high school basketball in the United States in more than a year, SPIRE head coach Jermaine Jackson believes the former No. 7 player in the 2019 class still possesses the potential to be a future top pick.
"LaMelo Ball got the ability to be the No. 1 pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers soon," Jackson, who totaled 135 appearances over the course of a six-year NBA career of his own told TMZ Sports. "In my opinion, LaMelo Ball can be the No. 1 pick in a year or two going to the Cleveland Cavaliers."
Of course, it's too early to even know where the Cavs would be selecting in 2020, which is when the 17-year-old Ball will first be eligible to enter the draft. It's also premature to know whether or not Jackson's assessment is accurate, after Ball spent the past year playing professionally in Lithuania, as well as the JBA, which was founded by his father, LaVar Ball.
There's also plenty of murkiness when it comes to the youngest Ball's path to the pros. Although his experience overseas was professional, Justin Brantley, SPIRE's associate academy director, told ESPN the former UCLA commit didn't accept money, which would make him eligible to play for both the institute's high school team this season and at the college level a year from now.
Either way, Ball will play for SPIRE's prep program in the coming year, squaring off against some of the top players in his class across the country. Where he'll go from there remains unclear, but for Jackson, his new star player's destination is far from in doubt.
"Ain't no question about it. He's known as [a future top pick] all over the world," Jackson said. "He has a talent -- some of it just can't be taught.
"I'm not going to be the guy to say, 'Oh, let me put some handcuffs on you. Let me put some more dribbling on you.' Hell no. Do what you do and I'm going to sit back and watch you do what you do."
For what it's worth, Ball's name is nowhere to be found in the most recent 2020 mock draft on NBADraft.net. The same site, however, does project one of Jackson's prognostications to come true, as it projects the Cavs to lay claim to the No. 1 overall pick.