I’m crazy enough to posit that NBA fans my age — and some somewhat younger, but definitely a larger class of those older — are missing out on the present if they don’t want to acknowledge that LaMelo Ball is more than the most talented Ball brother. That is unless you really like “Tweaker.”
He is special. Lamelo is a 6-foot-7 point guard with ridiculous vision and a youthful negotiation between bare effect and spectacular plays. The way he runs the offense is akin to the way someone with grave mouth chews through sour foods. He believes he can do anything, and he can do about 98% of those things. I don’t mean this with hate, but he is the only person I enjoy watching on the Hornets.
Outside of my (admittedly very weak) eye test, the offense drops around 12 points per 100 possessions according to pbpstats in his absence. That’s in exchange for only five additional points allowed per 100 possessions on defense when he is on the court. The combination of those numbers isn’t necessarily spectacular, but they’re indicative of someone who, through injuries, is still trying to bolster some semblance of competitive play.
It’s a seven point swing. Sure, he makes some “decisions,” but it takes a lot of fairly dishonest work to consider his presence the problem with the Hornets. Take a look at this depth chart and say with a straight face, “Man, the Hornets really need to get rid of LaMelo.”
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Charlotte is doing nothing to help LaMelo Ball win now
Picturing LaMelo in a winning situation in the middle of his fifth season in Charlotte is difficult. At least for observers. LaMelo, on the other hand, has clearly considered what it would be like, and his consideration is not necessarily indicative of the idea that he sees that winning situation coming in Charlotte.
LaMelo Ball wants to be in a winning situation, per @MikeAScotto
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 6, 2025
“I touched on this with some of the other guys, and some executives around the league are looking at it too. If you were willing to part with Mark Williams—who’s 23 and pretty good, though he has some injury… pic.twitter.com/Prqh37Uctf
The tweet really does say it all. LaMelo reportedly wants to win. The Charlotte Hornets, over the last three years, have finished second-to-last and third-to-last the previous two seasons and are once again one spot away from the bottom in the Eastern Conference this year. Should I bring up the depth chart again?
LaMelo gets hurt frequently. Despite his positive impact, there has not been a ton to show for his time in Charlotte.
However, he is loved by young NBA-heads, Charlotte fans, and executives who want to pay him to be somewhat aloof and awkward in strange TV commercials. There is inherent value in all of that, but it’s imperfect. One is left to wonder if the Charlotte front office considers those imperfections an irredeemable flaw.