In Charlotte, the Hornets are living and dying by LaMelo Ball. After drafting him 3rd overall in 2020, the franchise handed him the keys last season, giving him the ultimate green light as he averaged 20.1 points, 7.6 assists, and 6.7 rebounds per game on 42.9% shooting.
Melo still has a long way to go before he gets his game where he wants it to be, but there remains an overall positive view of his talent and future in the league.
But in a recent podcast, NBA analyst David Thorpe called out LaMelo for his leadership and revealed the scathing comments from one of his fellow competitors.
“This LaMelo Ball, when he’s the face of your franchise, you’re all about style and substance. You’re not about competitiveness, you’re not about toughness, you’re not about winning. LaMelo’s gotta grow up. I see nothing from him, not in year three, that shows me he cares about winning. I don’t believe that he does. You’re allowed to grow up… I talked to a player that played against Charlotte this preseason, and the player told me, ‘That team is trash because LaMelo Ball is trash.'”
LaMelo has shown flashes of his skill on the court, and he is (without a doubt) the best player on the Hornets roster by far. But is he a guy that’s going to lead a team to a title? That much remains to be seen, but there are clearly some doubts that Ball is that guy.
Of course, there are also guys who see Melo as a true rising star.
“When they really put them keys in my hand, I feel like it’s gonna be a whole new situation. But until then, I’m gonna keep doing what I need to do, just try to get these wins,” said Ball. “I ain’t gonna lie, every game I feel like I can do more than what I’m doing. It’s just [about] reading the whole game and reading the whole situation. And everybody being on the same page. The consistency part. Once all that clears, I feel like we’ll be straight. The season isn’t successful until you win a championship… This year hopefully we get in the playoffs, win a first round, something like that. Just keep going up from there. I just feel we’re like a big away. One that can clog up the whole paint, rebound. Put that bitch in my hands [and] let me rock! That’s how I be feeling. And then we’re gonna be straight.”
Without Miles Bridges, the Hornets are likely going to be a worse team than last year, but that may end up working in their favor if it grants them the no. 1 overall pick next summer.
Hopefully, that comment alone will help inspire LaMelo’s best game for the 2022-23 campaign.
