LaVar Ball was condemned by ESPN for the comment he made to "First Take" host Molly Qerim Rose on the show on Monday.
In a statement issued to USA TODAY and other outlets, a spokesperson for the network said: "LaVar Ball's comment to Molly Qerim Rose was completely inappropriate and we made him aware of that."
Ball was making an appearance on the show when Qerim Rose said she wanted to "switch gears" and move on to another topic — to which Ball responded: "You can switch gears with me anytime."
Qerim Rose then urged Ball to "stay focused," and she was praised by former ESPN reporter Jemele Hill for how she handled the situation.
"Kudos to Molly Querim for the professional way she handled LaVar Ball after his inappropriate comment," she tweeted. "Maybe ESPN will have finally learned its lesson about putting him on TV."
Former ESPN reporter Jeff Goodman, who covered the Ball family extensively, tweeted: "I apologize to everyone for getting him on TV years ago. Never ever thought it would get to the point it did (and has) or would never have done so."
This wasn't Ball's first on-air incident with a female reporter. In 2017, the controversial NBA father told Fox Sports 1's Kristine Leahy to "stay in your lane" when she asked him how many shoes his brand — Big Baller Brand — had sold. When host Colin Cowherd interjected and told Ball that Leahy is a reporter who's doing her job, Ball said "she can report to whoever she wants behind her."
Reportedly, ESPN does not plan to work with Ball on any of its platforms from this point forward.
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