Los Angeles Lakers

Lonzo Ball just became the youngest NBA player to ever record a triple-double, but he's got a looong way to go to reach Harlem Globetrotter status ... so says a real-deal Harlem Globetrotter!!

TMZ Sports spoke with "Hoops" Green -- the 15th woman in the team's 91-year history -- who says Zo doesn't have enough swag to don the Red, White and Blue.

How did it feel to jam the rock down Lonzo Ball's throat??

Ben Simmons wouldn't say ... but his smirk told us everything we needed to know.

TMZ Sports got Ben hitting Delilah and Warwick with 76ers bro Robert Covington after they took out Lonzo's Lakers at Staples -- why not celebrate, right?!

Simmons straight up dominated their matchup ... so when we asked about his dunk that sent 'Zo to the shadow realm, Ben reacted pretty much how you'd expect.

B.S. seems to love the club scene -- and so far, it hasn't impacted his play. He was out early Wednesday morning and still killed it later that day.

FYI, we bumped into a couple of the 76ers assistants on gameday ... and they didn't seem to mind.

The LiAngelo Ball arrest is no joke -- it's really scary -- and ex-Lakers player Devean George says the entire Ball family better be taking the situation seriously.

"I'm scared for him," George tells TMZ Sports ... "You gotta be real careful when you're doing stuff overseas."

Of course, George played 11 seasons in the NBA -- won 3 rings with the Lakers -- and says he's also concerned for Lonzo Ball ... because it's virtually impossible for Zo not to be distracted by his bro's legal situation.

The Lakers beat the Memphis Grizzlies Sunday night in L.A., but David Foster and his new gf, Katharine McPhee, might not have noticed.

The two had great seats, but it didn't matter because it looked like Katharine was more into David's convo than Lonzo Ball's ball skills.

They've been spotted together all over town the last couple of weeks, and were even snapped smooching. So far no official statement on the status of their relationship, but the body language pretty much says it all.

Gilbert Arenas thinks Lonzo Ball is off to a pretty decent start, but tells TMZ Sports they can't really shine in L.A. just yet BECAUSE THE REST OF HIS TEAM IS SUPER TRASH.

Here's Gil's point ... Lonzo is a passer, and in order for him to tear it up for the Purple & Gold, his teammates have to make the shots he sets them up for, something Arenas says these guys can't do.

"You try to put so much hype around a point guard but your team is bad. He can't make these players good, if they're Hondas they're Hondas. This is not fast in furious where you can put some Nitrous on Ingram and make him a better Honda."

Ouch. Arenas went on to explain that no point guards make all the greats like Shaq and Jordan who they were, and if the Lakers think Lonzo's gonna do that, they're fooling themselves.

Rapper ScHoolboy Q's got an ice-cold reality check for Lonzo Ball -- saying the Lakers superstar needs to get the hell out the studio and "STICK TO BASKETBALL."

With Lonzo droppin' more tracks in recent weeks, we had to ask Q if he wanted to get in on the aspiring emcee's career like DJ Mustard and DJ Quik.

His answer -- "HELL NAH! 'Cause I rather see that n***a score some points and get some damn assists."

But Q ain't hatin' ... telling TMZ Sports he just wants Lonzo to be great on the court.

FYI, dude's a huge Lakers fan, but beefs hard with the Dodgers -- straight-up TRASHING the National League champs for chokin' away the World Series.

Gilbert Arenas is tired of all the haters saying Jahlil Okafor sucks 'cause the 76ers are trying to cut bait ... telling TMZ Sports the big man's just stuck behind a superstar in Philly.

"He’s not a bust – there’s just a better player in front of him," Gil said, giving props to Joel Embiid. "He’s not a (Hasheem) Thabeet, he’s not a (Michael) Olowokandi – he’s better than those guys."

Basically, give Jah a change of scenery, and the former #3 overall pick can ball out.

Arenas also brought up the Lakers -- saying they have the reverse situation with former #2 pick Brandon Ingram (the starter) and rookie Kyle Kuzma (who's playing behind him).

Classic good news/bad news situation for Lonzo Ball ... good news is that one of the greatest producers in hip-hop history says he's totally down to work with Ball.

Bad news is that this guy ... DJ Quik ... says he'll only do so if Ball can really rap, saying he hasn't heard Lonzo's rhymes yet, and isn't sure about his skills.

You gotta remember, Quik has worked with Jay-Z, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and every other rap legend around, so impressing him might not be easy.

Welcome to the Lonzo Ball 6-game rookie season breakdown with your host ... LaVar Ball!

So, LaVar ... the Lakers are 2-4, but how do you think Lonzo looks so far?

"How would I rate his first few weeks? Good!"

He took responsibility for that loss to the Jazz ...

"Hey, that ain't nothing new to me. He knows what he's supposed to do. He do it right."

But it's a team sport. It was a team effort, right?

"It can be a team effort, it's all on him. He already know. We built that way. My boy built that way."

So, what happens next for Lonzo? How does LaVar feel about Metta World Peace saying he can't tell if Lonzo will be a star until 3 years into his pro career?

Metta World Peace wants all basketball critics to CHILL with the Lonzo Ball takes ... 'cause the ex-Laker says it's way too early to tell if the Big Baller is the real deal.

We spoke with Metta -- who just joined the Lakers' G-League team as a player development coach -- about Zo's first week in the NBA ... and he thinks it'll take 3 YEARS to find out if he's legit.

FYI -- Ball's averaging 11.5 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists through 4 games.

John Wall wasn't too bummed out after losing his "No Mercy" game against Lonzo Ball's Lakers -- hitting up Warwick nightclub ... and telling TMZ Sports there's no bad blood.

The Washington Wizards star vowed to punish the rookie for all the trash talk his dad, LaVar Ball, had been spouting off leading up to Wednesday's matchup at Staples Center.

But Wall and the Wizards came up short -- losing to the Lakers in overtime -- and after the game, he took out his frustrations at the club!

Wall says he's not holding a grudge with the Balls -- or anyone for that matter -- and focused his energy on having a good time.

As for LaVar ... he celebrated the victory by taking a bow to the crowd. He's loving this.

Charles Barkley ain't shy about what he'd do to Lonzo Ball if they played in the same era ... saying he'd try to take the kid's head clean off as punishment for his father's antics.

"I would've been goin' at his head, no question. Would've been talkin' to him the whole time about his daddy," Barkley told TMZ Sports.

Chuck actually REALLY likes Lonzo ... but 100% agrees with Kenny Smith, who told us LaVar Ball has put a target on his son's back.

"His dad has put so much pressure on him, he makes people not like him. Now he's got everybody not liking his son and he's gonna have to deal with that."

Sir Charles also had a pretty funny take on Lonzo's 1 big game for the Lakers -- saying it didn't count because it came against the crappy Phoenix Suns.

Speaking of the Suns ... Barkley also trashed Eric Bledsoe for tweeting that he wanted off the squad.

"Someone's paying you $15 million a year -- you shouldn't say, EVER, 'I don't wanna be here.'"

"You don't go on the Internet. You don't do that ... that was just bad."

Marcin Gortat thinks it's hilarious LaVar Ball said his Wizards should be afraid of Lonzo Ball ... telling LaVar that his teammate, John Wall, is gonna "TORTURE" the rookie.

The Big Baller Dad issued a warning to the Wiz -- who are set to play Lonzo's Lakers on Wednesday -- after L.A. dropped to 1-2 on Sunday ...

"They better beware, 'cause Lonzo ain't losin' again. Not in the same week!"

The Polish Hammer wasn't havin' none of that -- letting LaVar know Wall's comin' for 'Zo just like Clippers point guard Patrick Beverley did in the Lake Show's season opener.

Lonzo Ball should thank Clippers PG Patrick Beverley for giving him the business Thursday night ... 'cause in the long-run, it's really a good thing -- so says Master P.

We got P -- a HUGE NBA fan -- droppin' knowledge on Lonzo's debut at LAX ... telling us the Lakers rookie will only get better when grinders like Beverley beat him up.

The good news for Lonzo ... he's gonna get it all season long -- there's a LONG LIST of NBA stars looking to take a piece of his ass.

Lonzo Ball needs to back up his dad's trash talk or it's gonna be a looong season ... so says Kenny Smith.

The "Inside the NBA" star says LaVar Ball's antics have "put a bullseye" right on Lonzo's back -- and Patrick Beverley ain't gonna be the only one who's gonna take a shot.

The good news for Lonzo ... Kenny says it's "just one game" and he'll shut up the haters if he bounces back strong.

John Wall saw this coming from a mile away ... telling us back in Feb. that NBA players like Patrick Beverley are gonna come for Lonzo Ball all season long to "leave a statement."

He was right.

Back when LaVar Ball was first firing up the Lonzo-hype machine, we spoke with Wall about how LaVar's braggadocious statements could affect the Lakers rookie on the court.

Wall told us LaVar's comments would add "fuel to the fire" for Lonzo's opponents, explaining:

"A lot of people try to leave a statement, you know let 'em know how the league is ... especially if they're gonna be going against him for the next couple years."

Beverley was DEFINITELY trying to send a message Thursday night -- beating up on Lonzo the entire game in a dominating Clippers victory.

And it sounds like it ain't gonna get easier for Ball as the season moves along ...