LaMelo Ball’s Hornets to meet Lonzo’s Pelicans in first NBA match-up on Jan. 8
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The NBA released the first half of its regular season schedule on Friday with games beginning just before Christmas and stretching into early March.
One of the notable match-ups will be the first showdown between Lonzo and LaMelo Ball. With the constricted 72-game schedule, the two sides will meet just once in the 2020-21 season, barring a meeting in the NBA Finals. That regular season match-up will come on Jan. 8 in New Orleans.
The game will be nationally televised on ESPN with tip-off set for 7:30 p.m. That is the lone nationally televised game for the Hornets in the first half of the season while the Pelicans will have 19 games on national television in the first half of the season.
For LaMelo, one night after his meeting with Lonzo, he will take on former Chino Hills teammate and friend Onyeka Okongwu and the Atlanta Hawks at home. Okongwu noted games against Lonzo and LaMelo as ones he was most excited for in his rookie season.
As for the Lonzo-LaMelo showdown, Lonzo gave his brother a friendly warning of their first meeting while on JJ Redick’s podcast during the lockdown in April.
“We’ll see. We’ll see if my name is matched up against his. I know his game pretty well so it might be a tough night for him.”
Lonzo will have his chance to live up to those words against LaMelo less than a month into the season.
