Prienu Vytautas, the Lithuanian basketball team that signed LaVar Ball's teenage sons LaMelo and LiAngelo, has reportedly withdrawn from the Baltic Basketball League this season.
Instead, Vytautas will play in the "Big Baller Brand Challenge," a series of five exhibition games intended to get the brothers even more playing time. According to ESPN's Darren Rovell, each of the five games will stream exclusively on Facebook Live.
The Ball brothers are still scheduled to make their professional hoops debut tomorrow, January 9th, but it will be against Zalgiris 2, which is the younger team of Lithuania's premier program. According to ESPN's Jeff Goodman, LaMelo and LiAngelo could also play in the team's Lithuanian league game on January 13th at Lietkabelis, but it will likely depend on how they handle their debut.
Other games in the Big Baller Brand Challenge will be played at Prienu Vytautas' between January 15-28, against five different Lithuanian ball clubs including Zalagris, BC Lietuvos rytas, Vytis, Dzūkija and Jonava.
"When you come out and they change it just for the Balls," LaVar Ball told ESPN, "you know it's real."
"This is a great thing for everybody," Ball said. "I'm excited for the fact they named something after the Big Baller Brand. Brings exposure to our brand and also gives us quality basketball. People back home get to watch it."
According to the ESPN report, Prienu Vytautas expects the Ball brothers to generate about 100,000 euros ($120,000) in revenue for the team, including an undisclosed amount that Facebook is paying to show the Big Baller Brand Challenge games.
