The Charlotte Hornets haven’t really been in their best form since the start of the regular season, but the same can’t be said of their guard, LaMello Ball, who nonetheless performed admirably and continues to record impressive stats.
Drafted in 2020, the Charlotte Hornets selected the 6-foot-7 guard with the third overall pick. Make no mistake, Ball hasn’t gone unnoticed in the past few years; it’s just that despite his remarkable plays, he gets outshined by other players like the Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards, the Hawks’ Trae Young, and the Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton.
This time, though, the guard had a breakout performance during their latest bout against the first-ranked team in the Western Conference standings, the Boston Celtics. At one point during overtime, Ball was seen shaking off Jrue Holiday before slicing in through the players and driving for a basket.
LAMELO BALL DROPS JRUE HOLIDAY 😳 pic.twitter.com/4J7lveb5BC
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 21, 2023
Ball fired 15 for 27 from the field and 5 for 11 from three-point range as he closed the game with 36 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists.
In the wake of his performance, fans have also begun to pay more attention to the 22-year-old and found that this wasn’t the first time Ball put on a great performance; in fact, he’s been almost consistent with his play this season. During the Hornets’ last eight games, Ball scored no less than 25 points in all of them.
Unfortunately, the team hasn’t been able to keep up and has lost six times out of the eight games, winning only against the Wizards and Celtics.
LaMelo Ball over his last 8 games:
36 PTS – 9 REB – 8 AST
34 PTS – 5 REB – 9 AST
37 PTS – 5 REB – 5 AST
28 PTS – 6 REB – 11 AST
32 PTS – 7 REB – 6 AST
25 PTS – 6 REB – 6 AST
34 PTS – 4 REB – 7 AST
30 PTS – 10 REB – 13 ASTYoung superstar 🔥 pic.twitter.com/zogc3cej14
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) November 21, 2023
Many fans are now protesting to either get Ball some help on court or for him to get out of the Hornets if he’s serious about his career. They believe that being on a losing team is the reason why he hasn’t been talked about enough lately. Some even said that Ball could’ve been placed with the likes of Edwards and Haliburton if only he had joined a winning team.
Balls’ recent feat
In Charlotte Hornets’ latest X post, the team highlighted Ball’s most recent accomplishment, writing, “LaMelo Ball is now the 2nd fastest and 3rd youngest player in NBA history to make 500 3-pointers.”
As per Sports Illustrated, it only took Ball 175 days to reach that groundbreaking number.
Ball is shaping up to be one of the top young players in the league. He has the talent, the game, and the confidence to be a star, and fans can’t wait to see where he goes from here.
https://twitter.com/hornets/status/1726776438030782875?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1726776438030782875%7Ctwgr%5Edf6c49150eb1de1347299c1778c68ae1a95db65b%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.si.com%2Fnba%2Fhornets%2Fgameday%2Flamelo-ball-becomes-2nd-fastest-3rd-youngest-to-make-500-career-threes
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