Every October 23 is a day to celebrate in the Ball household as October 23 is the Big Baller's birthday - also known as LaVar Ball. This year, LaVar Ball turns 51-years-old and despite his celebrity status, he has only been known to the media and people across the world for about two years.

About LaVar Ball

LaVar Ball was born on October 23, 1967, and is one of seven children born to Maria and Anderson Ball.

In high school, LaVar was the starting quarterback on the football team and a starting forward on the basketball team. One year in high school, LaVar totaled 316 rebounds which is the school record.

LaVar attended West Los Angeles College which plays in the junior college division in his freshman season. In his sophomore year, LaVar transferred to Washington State which plays DI but didn't fare well as he averaged 2.2 points, one assist and 2.3 rebounds in 26 games played. For his final two years of college, he played for Cal State Los Angeles where he played with three of his four brothers. Cal State Los Angeles is also where he met his wife Tina who was on the women's basketball team.

Once he graduated, he signed a contract with New York Jets as a defensive end but later changed to tight end. After spending two seasons on the Jets practice squad, he signed a contract with the Carolina Panthers but never ended up playing a game for them.

Due to injuries, he retired from football and became a personal trainer.

Rise to fame

As his three sons, Lonzo, LiAngelo, and LaMelo became basketball prodigies at Chino Hills High School, a lot of people wanted to interview him to see what life is like for the Ball family. His sons all had commitments to UCLA with his youngest son Melo committing at the age of 13 but the Ball family no longer have any affiliation with the university due to multiple reasons.

When Zo was in his senior year of high school, the Ball brothers all played together and went 35-0.

When Lonzo played his freshman season at UCLA, that's when LaVar Ball became known worldwide. During Lonzo's games at UCLA, LaVar would make outlandish claims during interviews which got the attention of tons of media outlets.

His claims have been outright ridiculous as he has made claims of that his son Lonzo is better than Steph Curry who's won two MVP awards, that he can beat Michael Jordan one-on-one, that he'd want a billion dollars if any company were to sign his sons to a shoe deal, and many more crazy statements that he's made. USA Today noted in their Lonzo Wire, that he has always been brash and loud.

Aside from his ridiculous claims, he is the CEO of Big Baller Brand which sells clothing and apparel which was formed off the talents and popularity of his sons. His company has come under fire before for overpricing products with one example being selling Lonzo's signature shoes for $495. However, they were reduced to $200 with Lonzo's new signature shoe.

LaVar is not only popular in the sports world but is also popular in the general media as well. Back in November 2017, LaVar got into a fight with President Trump over whether he helped his son LiAngelo get out of prison in China. His fight with the President, which was seen as a marketing tool by many, got him $13.2 million in free advertisements. He was interviewed multiple times on CNN and interviewed by many other reporters and media outlets which increased awareness of his brand.

LaVar also has his own reality TV show called "Ball in the Family" which is shown on Facebook Watch. It is rumored that he has made millions of dollars off the reality TV show and they are currently nearing the end of the third season.

The Street noted that with his outrageous claims, being the owner and founder of an apparel company, and a reality TV show, LaVar is a rich man as his net worth is estimated to be $4 million. That estimation may be wrong though, as he lives in a house that is 16 000 square feet and was purchased for $5.2 million last October.
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