BEVERLY HILLS, March 04, (THEWILL) – One of the most impressive rookies of the current NBA Eastern Conference has been Charlotte Hornets’ rookie LaMelo Ball. To a man, most pundits have admitted to being massively impressed by his delivery in just the first few months of his career.
Even basketball legend Michael Jordan was impressed. The Hall of Famer and Hornets’ governor remarked: “I think Melo has adjusted to the NBA game better than any of us ever thought this early in his career.
“He has exceeded our expectations so far this season.”
The 19-year-old, who was the number three pick in the 2020 NBA draft, is now a top contender for the league’s Rookie of the Year award. He has achieved this status by averaging 15.8 points, 6.3 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game.
Ball began the season coming off the bench for Charlotte and helping to get results but his dexterity quickly made the guard into a regular starter with 20.7 points, 6.7 assists and 6.2 rebounds per game that he started.
These types of numbers easily made him named the league’s Rookie of the Month for two consecutive months running, in January and February. And, he has not slowed down yet.
The numbers aside, the young guard has also drawn attention with his natural ability to create highlights in a variety of ways, which has not gone unnoticed by the hundreds of videos of his moves that have been shared on social media accompanied by high praise especially from the pros running commentary.
Though Balls’ talent has never been a secret and scouts have had their radar on him since early in his high school career, a slow start in the NBA would not have been surprising as is often the case with prodigious talents thrown into the mix of legends in the game.
This is more so for a 19-year-old, who skipped college and played just 12 games last year for the Illawarra Hawks in the NBL before a foot injury ended his season prematurely. His situation was not helped by the COVID-19 pandemic which forced the cancellation of summer league on top of a reduced training camp and preseason sessions.
However, even with a tough transition to the big league for many rookies this season, Ball has continued to thrive. With his contributions in the bag, the Hornets, who are currently sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 17-18 record, are already thinking about their first playoff appearance since 2016.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
