WWE Issues Statement On LaMelo Ball’s Reported Use Of The N-Word During Appearance

Camille Augustin
Updated
What seemed to be a dream come true for father LaVar Ball swiftly took a controversial turn.

By Camille Augustin

LaVar Ball took his branding skills to a different sporting arena last night (June 26). For the WWE’s weekly Monday Night RAW program, the father of three basketball-loving sons unpacked his Big Baller Brand apparel within the ring as a means of promotion, USA Today Sports reports.

What seemed to be a dream come true for the enthusiastic dad swiftly took a controversial turn when his youngest son, LaMelo Ball, reportedly dropped the N-word on live television. While his father jokingly squared up with The Miz — the removal of his shirt sent his sons into a fit of laughter — LaMelo gassed his dad up by saying, “beat that ni**a a**.” The racial slur quickly prompted a statement from the WWE.

“The inappropriate language used by a guest during the ‘Miz TV’ segment was not scripted nor reflects WWE’s values,” the organization wrote, per the Los Angeles Times. The audio was posted on Sports Illustrated’s Twitter account:

Despite the high school student’s aforementioned occurrence, the Ball family looks forward to returning to the arena in the future. “I think it was a fun experience,” the patriarch said. “My first time ever on RAW and it’s probably the best on the fact that Miz got a lot of energy with him and it was fun out there.”

As noted by Uproxx, this isn’t the first time the racial slur made an appearance on the longstanding broadcast. The WWE’s chairman, Vince McMahon, said the word during an awkward conversation with John Cena in 2005. Former pro-wrestler Hulk Hogan’s contract was also severed after he was caught on tape saying the word.

Those who caught the episode reacted to the LaMelo’s slip of the tongue:

This post WWE Issues Statement On LaMelo Ball’s Reported Use Of The N-Word During Appearance first appeared on Vibe.