LaMelo Ball, manager purchase Australian NBL team Illawarra Hawks

LaMelo Ball and his manager Jermaine Jackson purchased the projected NBA draft lottery pick's former Australian team, the Illawarra Hawks of the country's National Basketball League. 

"We own the team. It's a done deal," Jackson told ESPN on Thursday. "Melo loves the Illawarra fans. He loves that community. They opened their arms to him. They made us feel like we are at home.

"When high school kids hear LaMelo owns the team, they will want to come. They'll know they will be taken care of. We're going to put the organization on steroids, building it into a program that guys want to play for."

Ball only played 12 games for the Hawks before shutting it down after an injury. He averaged 17.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game during that span. His performances, which included back-to-back triple double games, were enough to entice NBA scouts and even garner attention as the potential No. 1 pick. 

Ball previously donated a month of his NBL salary to the victims of the Australian bushfire.

"When we started hearing about the (financial) issues they were going through, we talked about it and decided, 'Let's own the team.'" Jackson said. 

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