LaMelo Ball was recently named Rookie of the Year for the 2020-21 season. A much-deserved award after putting up great performances right out of the gate, taking down Anthony Edwards for the distinction.
As it happens most of the time, LaMelo had no clue as to when or if he was going to win the award, so the NBA on TNT guys and his teammate Miles Bridges came up with a big surprise for him.
LaMelo met Miles to allegedly pick up some Hornets apparel. Little did he know that, behind those jerseys, his Rookie of the Year award was already waiting for him, and they got this heartwarming moment all in tape.
Miles Bridges helped surprise LaMelo with the Rookie of the Year trophy 🙌
(via @NBATV) https://t.co/jhqdSxCF4R
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 17, 2021
Ball led the ROY race for most of the season, and even though it seemed like he was going to lose a lot of ground to Edwards when his season seemed over with an injury, he managed to come back and lead the depleted Charlotte Hornets to the play-in tournament.
During his first year in the league, he averaged 15.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 1.6 steals per game, showing flashes of outstanding playmaking ability and never shying away from a big shot.
LaMelo became a walking highlight reel with his flashy passes and looks like the Hornets have finally found a young gem to build around. The future looks bright for them as they were able to compete even without Gordon Hayward.
Now, LaMelo claims that his goal for his sophomore season is to win an NBA Championship, which is a sign of that good-old Ball confidence.
And, while that is pretty much out of reach at this stage in his development, there’s no doubt that he’ll be very good for a very long time, so maybe that will happen eventually down the road for him.
