BEVERLY HILLS, March 24, (THEWILL) – On Tuesday, the Eastern Conference NBA team, the Charlotte Hornets, announced that their rookie sensation, LaMelo Ball, underwent surgery on his fractured right wrist.
The operation was successful but the Hornets said the player will be re-evaluated in four weeks to check for progress.
From all indications, it increases the possibility of Ball returning to active team participation before May, which brings the regular season to an end.
The 19-year-old injured himself on Saturday, when he attempted to break his fall with his hand on the court in the second half of the Hornets’ loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. For the rest of his game, he appeared to be in discomfort, clutching his wrist, but he endured until the end.
The six-foot-six point guard has had an outstanding start to his professional career in the NBA and was a clear favourite to win rookie of the year, averaging 6.1 assists to lead all first-year players, and 15.9 points for second in the rookie class.
As reported by THEWILL, even basketball legend Michael Jordan has been impressed by his performance. 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, 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. This drawback will cut his chances of making the mark to take March’s honour.
The numbers aside, the teenage 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.
Not Ball, who has taken the NBA by storm. That is why the Hornets are hoping that he will be back in time for the business end of the season.
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.
