The average NBA fan has a very selective and limited memory based on all of the players that come in and out of the league.
Charlotte Hornets point guard LaMelo Ball has been in and out of the NBA spotlight, mostly due to injuries and the bad conditions of the team.
Ball started his NBA career on fire for the Hornets by winning the 2021 NBA Rookie of the Year. The following season, Ball played 75 games for the Hornets as he averaged 20.1 points shooting a career-high of 38.9% while also averaging 6.7 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.6 steals. He was named an NBA All-Star that season.
The past two seasons have been brutal on the young star as he combined to play only 58 games since the end of the 2021-2022 NBA Season. Last season, he only played in 22 games.
Ball is doing all he can while averaging 29.4 points per game shooting a field-goal percentage of 44.3%. While Ball is dominating, the Hornets (4-6) are struggling to find ways to win. One media outlet says Ball needs a place to win and to get more exposure.
The Hornets haven’t been to the playoffs since the 2015-2016 NBA Season. The two seasons where they’ve been the closest are the first two seasons with Ball in the league. Ball has played well when healthy, but the Hornets have limited his exposure to the national market and potential in the postseason.
On Monday, former NBA player and ‘Run It Back’ analyst Chandler Parsons said Ball needs more exposure and a bigger market to show off with talent. Parsons says that he should join Los Angeles, but not as a Laker, but with the Los Angeles Clippers.
“Now listen, you him on like the Clippers, you put him in a big market right now, I think we are talking about a whole different player based on his opportunity that the TV time is going to get.
“The average doesn’t know who LaMelo Ball is because the Charlotte Hornets have been historically bad, so you have to be on a good team like he is going to put up numbers on this team,” Parsons said.
Ball is a young star who is playing incredibly well despite encountering serious injuries that limited him in each of the last two seasons. He is fifth in the league behind Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anthony Davis, Jayson Tatum and Nikola Jokic. Most of the average fans don’t realize he is having a stellar season while the Hornets.
If Ball joined the Clippers, he would have the great exposure his brother Lonzo had when he was first drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers.
Ball would be playing for a playoff caliber on a solid roster, especially on the defensive side of the court. He would even pick up the pace and ensure Kawhi Leonard doesn’t exert himself too much before the postseason. The Clippers are currently seventh in the Western Conference with a 6-4 record.
The Clippers would get a young star, something they will not have due to the first-round picks traded for superstars like Leonard, James Harden and Paul George (now with the Philadelphia 76ers).
Related Posts
