LaMelo Ball’s injury couldn’t have come at a better time for the Hornets

Just when fans thought things couldn’t get any worse for the Charlotte Hornets, they found out the team will be without LaMelo Ball for its NBA Cup game against the New York Knicks. The star will miss his first game of the 2024-25 season due to soreness in his left calf.

As such, the Hornets are down to eight men, including five out of six of their top scorers this campaign.

Charlotte likely wanted its best player on the floor as much as possible. After all, he represents the team’s best chance to win on any given night. Unfortunately, it appears he suffered the injury late in the Hornets’ loss to the Miami Heat on Wednesday.

Mark Williams, Nick Richards, Miles Bridges, Grant Williams and Tre Mann are among those still sidelined and it doesn’t look like any of them will be back anytime soon, especially Grant Williams who is out for the season.

Lack of a lot of bodies has led the coaching staff to rely on Ball a ton. The good news is that the 2022 All-Star has risen to the challenge. He is second in the league in average points (31.1) and 3-pointers (4.7), while dishing out 6.9 assists per game. match.

Without a reliable shot creator outside of Ball and Brandon Miller, the coaching staff had to play the youngster 38.8 minutes per game. match in the last three matches. He is at an age where he can still handle such a heavy workload. However, we must remember that he is coming off two injury-ravaged campaigns which saw him sit out 106 out of a possible 164 games.

Furthermore, it is not the first time that the 2021 Rookie of the Year was included in the Hornets’ injury report. So he has had to nurse ailments throughout the season. A bit of rest should allow him to recover and get his body right.

The timing couldn’t be better because Ball would be able to avoid a physical matchup against the Knicks. Not that he can’t handle it, but as mentioned, his health may not yet be at its optimum. And besides, Charlotte has been pretty much knocked out of the regular season, so it’s not like the team has anything big to play for on Friday.

Some may wonder how the Hornets will fare without their floor general. His teammates, especially Miller, Vasilije Micic and likely KJ Simpson, will have no choice but to step up as a ball handler and distributor. If they can’t, it should serve as an additional wake-up call for the front office to address their playmaking issues.