<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/why-lamelo-ball-injury-shutdown-leads-questions-hornets-future');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why LaMelo Ball’s injury shutdown leads to more questions about Hornets’ future');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Why-LaMelo-Balls-injury-shutdown-leads-to-more-questions-about-Hornets-future.jpg"></figure><h1>Why LaMelo Ball’s injury shutdown leads to more questions about Hornets’ future</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-28T17:16:46-07:00">March 28th, 5:16pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-28T17:20:15-07:00">March 28th, 5:20pm</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-undergoes-multiple-season-ending-injury-procedures">LaMelo Ball will sit out the remainder of the season</a> to have two minor procedures on his ankle and wrist. With 10 games left in the season and the Charlotte Hornets not playing for a postseason berth, it’s likely the safest decision that the organization could have made. Ball has been labeled as an “injury-prone” player in his young career, so saving his body for the next season. That could also be with or without Ball on the roster. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-rumors-hornets-hold-no-interest-lamelo-ball-offseason-trade">A possible trade could still be in the cards</a> depending on how the offseason goes.</p><h2><b>The Hornets’ vision moving forward</b></h2><p>All the Hornets’ focus will be zeroed in on the 2025 NBA Draft. <a href="https://www.nbadraft.net/players/cooper-flagg/" rel="noopener">Prospects like Cooper Flagg</a>, Ace Bailey, and others are expected to be available with whatever pick falls in the Hornets’ lap. Shutting down Ball allows him to recover and fully embrace the tank. Sure, teams can never admit it themselves, but that seems like a clear plan at this point in time. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-brandon-miller-miss-remainder-of-season-wrist-surgery">Brandon Miller has been sidelined for a while</a>, too, so this course of action makes sense.</p><p>With the draft in mind, adding another talented prospect to Miller and Ball in the backcourt is promising. As stated in another article, the Hornets can use free agency, similar to how the Detroit Pistons did. Sign veteran players who can help be the glue for your young team. A team like Charlotte can use a couple of guys to show this team how to win.</p><h2><b>LaMelo Ball’s future</b></h2><p>It’s hard to see a future where LaMelo Ball is not in it. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/nba-rumors-hornets-hold-no-interest-lamelo-ball-offseason-trade">Hornets have said that they’re not interested</a> in moving on from their young star. He’s been one of the few bright spots for the Hornets organization. Although the team hasn’t made the playoffs in the last nine seasons, which is the longest streak in the NBA, Ball has captivated NBA fans everywhere. His play is exciting and keeps people on the edge of their seats. For highlight culture, he’s meant a lot to it.</p><p>Still, anyone can be moved in the Association. After witnessing the Luka Doncic trade, that puts it in perspective that any star, no matter where we rank them, can be moved at the drop of a dime. Ball was in year one of his $260 million contract extension and is locked in with Charlotte until the 2028-29 season. Either he’d have to request out or the team would have to feel differently about their decision to keep him around long term.</p><h2><b>Draft capital</b></h2><p>The Hornets’ next selection in the draft could be their most important one yet. They’re tied with two other teams to land the number one overall pick, but Charlotte should feel optimistic. Their young core is solid already. If they land the number one pick, a Flagg planted between Ball and Miller could help bring this core closer together.</p><p>The Hornets have a second round pick as well that could be useful as well. They scooped up KJ Simpson with their pick last year, and he had some solid moments. Continuing to stockpile talent around the elite young talent is how you build a hopeful competitive team.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why LaMelo Ball’s injury shutdown leads to more questions about Hornets’ future

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-undergoes-multiple-season-ending-injury-procedures');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets’ LaMelo Ball undergoes multiple season-ending injury procedures');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Hornets-news-LaMelo-Ball-exits-Lakers-game-with-scary-injury.jpg"></figure><h1>Hornets’ LaMelo Ball undergoes multiple season-ending injury procedures</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-28T14:00:42-07:00">March 28th, 2:00pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-28T14:30:14-07:00">March 28th, 2:30pm</time><address><a>Matty Breisch</a>Matty Breisch is a Senior Editor who specializes in NFL and WWE content at ClutchPoints. He can be read at Heavy, FanSided, The Needle Drop, Philadelphia Sports Network, and right here at ClutchPoints. Are you ready to read about football and wrestling? Well, you've come to the right place.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After playing through a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-playing-charlotte-hawks-injury-report" rel="noopener">series of injuries</a> in 2024-25, the Charlotte Hornets have officially shut down All-Star guard LaMelo Ball for the rest of the season.</p><p>Taking to social media to announce the news, ESPN’s Shams Charania revealed the news, noting that Ball would undergo two procedures to <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/44443854/sources-lamelo-ball-undergo-season-ending-procedures" rel="noopener">address issues with his ankle and wrist</a>.</p><p>Originally drafted in the third round following one of the most publicized pre-NBA paths in recent memory, Ball has been an electrifying player in Charlotte, winning Rookie of the Year back in 2021 before becoming an All-Star the following season. Since that fateful run, however, things haven’t gone smoothly for the pride of Chino Hills, appearing in just <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/ballla01.html" rel="noopener">36 games in 2022-23</a>, 22 games in 2023-24, and 47 games in 2024-25.</p><p>While Ball has been incredibly successful when on the court, averaging a career-high 25.2 points per game this season to go with 7.4 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.1 steals, Ball’s availability has been a real question mark for a Hornets organization that just can’t seem to find much consistency.</p><p>With Ball now set to miss the remainder of the season, the Hornets will look to add another high-profile player to their roster alongside their All-Pro guard moving forward, much like the addition of Tidjane Salaün last summer and Brandon Miller in 2023. And as for Ball? Well, he will return next season in year two of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-reveals-reasons-behind-signing-5-year-260-million-extension-with-charlotte">five-year, $260 million max contract</a> he signed back in 2023.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets’ LaMelo Ball undergoes multiple season-ending injury procedures

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-why-lamelo-ball-earned-kyrie-irving-healthy-admiration');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why Hornets’ LaMelo Ball has earned Kyrie Irving’s ‘healthy admiration’');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Why-LaMelo-Ball-has-earned-Kyrie-Irvings-healthy-admiration.jpg"></figure><h1>Why Hornets’ LaMelo Ball has earned Kyrie Irving’s ‘healthy admiration’</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-24T11:17:22-07:00">March 24th, 11:17am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-24T11:17:22-07:00">March 24th, 11:17am</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>LaMelo Ball is having a career year, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed by his peers. Kyrie Irving gave him his flowers after being a spectator from afar over the last few years. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hawks-news-how-trae-young-made-history-free-throw-line-in-win-hornets">Charlotte Hornets have not been winning games</a> and have been <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/changes-hornets-must-make-end-playoff-drought-2025-26">officially eliminated from postseason contention</a>, but Ball’s play has been a bright spot for his young team. He’s averaging a career-high in points per game with 25.2.</p><h2><b>Kyrie Irving gives LaMelo Ball his flowers</b></h2><p>On his live stream, Kyrie Irving gave Ball <a href="https://x.com/SnapshotKyle/status/1903882269267526084" rel="noopener">his props for handling the spotlight</a> for practically all his life.</p><p>“We were signed to the same agency, Roc Nation, but I ended up getting a chance to see him from afar,” Irving said. “I also have a healthy admiration for somebody who has been in the public eye for that long and is still ultra-successful. One of the best things is when a kid actually achieves the unachievable while still being on camera all the time. I don’t know what that’d be like to be on camera all the time like he was.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Kyrie Irving talking about his “healthy admiration” for LaMelo Ball’s ability to be under the public eye for so long &amp; still be “ultra successful” 🤞🏾 <a href="https://t.co/KRnYdEPTwd">pic.twitter.com/KRnYdEPTwd</a></p><p>— Kyle Ingram (@SnapshotKyle) <a href="https://twitter.com/SnapshotKyle/status/1903882269267526084?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 23, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Ball appeared on “Ball in the Family” when he was just 14 years old. Appearing in the show with his brothers, Lonzo and Liangelo Ball and of course his outspoken father, Lavar. The show debuted back in 2017. Fast forward to today in 2025, LaMelo Ball is now 23 years old and wrapping his fifth season.</p><h2><b>Irving knows Ball studied his game</b></h2><p>Ball’s creativity has been on full display since he entered the NBA. Irving believes he might’ve played a part in his development in that department.</p><p>“This young kid, if there was anybody watching a lot of my film and studying, that’s definitely one of them,” Irving said.</p><p>Kyrie Irving has a lot of memorable moments with the ball in his hands. He’s already been crowned by fans as the most skilled player in the history of the league for his creativity around the rim and his ability to create space for his shot. Ball has a unique way of creating windows to score and getting himself open looks. From the step-backs or side-step dribbles to cut dribbles to get to that right-handed floater, Ball is a special offensive talent in his own right.</p><h2><b>LaMelo Ball’s special talent is still worth believing in for Hornets</b></h2><p>Despite the rough seasons, Ball has been one of the only bright spots for the Hornets for years. Thankfully he has a few running mates that could help make this team competitive if they’re healthy. Brandon Miller and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-non-cooper-flagg-2025-nba-draft-targets-watch-ncaa-tournament">whatever potential lottery pick they add in the 2025 NBA Draft</a> can help the Hornets.</p><p>It’s nice to see an All-Star talent acknowledge a young one’s game. As Kyrie Irving continues to rehab from a torn ACL, he had time to share his thoughts about maybe one of the more misunderstood stars in LaMelo Ball.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why Hornets’ LaMelo Ball has earned Kyrie Irving’s ‘healthy admiration’

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-playing-charlotte-hawks-injury-report');   ga('set', 'title', 'Is LaMelo Ball playing tonight? Hornets vs. Hawks injury report');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Is-LaMelo-Ball-playing-tonight-Hornets-vs.-Hawks-injury-report.jpg"></figure><h1>Is LaMelo Ball playing tonight? Hornets vs. Hawks injury report</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-18T09:30:20-07:00">March 18th, 9:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-18T09:30:20-07:00">March 18th, 9:30am</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/joey.mistretta/" rel="facebook">Joey Mistretta</a>Joey Mistretta is a Dallas Mavericks beat reporter, Dallas Wings beat reporter and lead MLB editor for ClutchPoints. He is originally from Lake Arrowhead, California. Mistretta graduated from Biola University with a degree in broadcast journalism.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Hawks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets will host the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night. Is LaMelo Ball going to play, however?</p><p>Ball is in the middle of a strong season. He has played well for the most part. However, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/is-lamelo-ball-playing-tonight-cavs-hornets-injury-report">Ball has dealt with injury concerns</a> during the 2024-25 campaign. At the moment, the Hornets guard is dealing with right wrist soreness.</p><p>Here is everything we know about LaMelo Ball’s injury status for tonight’s game vs. the Hawks.</p><p><b><i>*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV (</i></b><a href="https://www.fubo.tv/lp/nba/?irad=356361&amp;irmp=492408" rel="noopener sponsored"><b><i>Get Access | Save $30</i></b></a><i>)</i><b><i>*</i></b></p><h2><b>LaMelo Ball’s injury status vs. Hawks</b></h2><p>According to the NBA injury report, Ball is <a href="https://ak-static.cms.nba.com/referee/injury/Injury-Report_2025-03-18_11AM.pdf" rel="noopener">listed as probable</a> due to his aforementioned wrist concern.</p><p>The 23-year-old is currently averaging 25.4 points, 7.2 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals per outing. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-how-lamelo-ball-made-history-spurs">Ball has continued to establish himself as a star</a> at the NBA level.</p><p>The Hornets are unquestionably a better team when Ball is on the floor. When it comes to the question of is LaMelo Ball playing tonight vs. the Hawks, the answer is maybe.</p><h2><b>Hornets’ injury report</b></h2><p>The Hornets are dealing with a plethora of injuries heading into Tuesday’s game. In fact, Charlotte has 10 players listed on the injury report.</p><ul><li>LaMelo Ball (right wrist soreness): Probable</li><li>Marcus Garrett (low back soreness): Probable</li><li>Miles Bridges (rest): Out</li><li>Damion Baugh (G League two-way): Out</li><li>Tre Mann (disc herniation): Out</li><li>Brandon Miller (right wrist ligament repair): Out</li><li>Josh Okogie (left hamstring strain): Out</li><li>Tidjane Salaun (G League on assignment): Out</li><li>KJ Simpson (G League two-way): Out</li><li>Grant Williams (right ACL repair): Out</li></ul><h2><b>Hawks’ injury report</b></h2><p>The Hawks also have a number of injuries to monitor. Atlanta has nine players listed on Tuesday’s injury report.</p><ul><li>Trae Young (right Achilles tendinitis): Probable</li><li>Kobe Bufkin (right shoulder surgery): Out</li><li>Clint Capela (family reasons): Out</li><li>Jalen Johnson (left shoulder surgery): Out</li><li>Caris LeVert (right knee soreness): Out</li><li>Larry Nance Jr. (right medial femoral condyle fracture): Out</li><li>Daeqwon Plowden (G League two-way): Out</li><li>Jacob Toppin (G League two-way): Out</li><li>Keaton Wallace (G League two-way): Out</li></ul><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Is LaMelo Ball playing tonight? Hornets vs. Hawks injury report

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-how-lamelo-ball-made-history-spurs');   ga('set', 'title', 'How LaMelo Ball made Hornets history vs. Spurs');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-news-How-LaMelo-Ball-made-Charlotte-history-vs.-Spurs.jpg"></figure><h1>How LaMelo Ball made Hornets history vs. Spurs</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-15T13:04:51-07:00">March 15th, 1:04pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-15T13:04:51-07:00">March 15th, 1:04pm</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball made franchise history in Friday’s 145-134 win against the San Antonio Spurs. While some question <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-further-update-long-term-future-in-charlotte">Ball’s long-term future with the Hornets</a>, LaMelo’s impressive performance against the Spurs is one of his best in the 2024-25 regular season. It extended beyond his scoring prowess. Averaging 25.6 points, including 3.9 threes per game, the Hornets’ starting guard also delivered in assists.</p><p>Ball <a href="https://x.com/statmuse/status/1900730787688771600" rel="noopener">became</a> the first player in franchise history to record 15+ assists and seven+ threes in a single game. He finished with 27 points on 9-of-13 attempts, including 7-of-11 from deep, and 15 assists, making Hornets history, per StatMuse.</p><p>https://twitter.com/statmuse/status/1900730787688771600</p><p>Ball also finished with three rebounds and one steal in Charlotte’s win. His 27 points led seven Hornets players in double figures, including Nick Smith Jr.’s 26 points off the bench, Miles Bridges’ 21 points, and Josh Green’s 20 points as Charlotte’s entire starting lineup scored in double-digits.</p><p>The Hornets scored 37 and 44 points in the opening quarters. Then, after halftime, they tacked on 40 third-quarter points that kept the Spurs at bay despite their 39-point fourth quarter, as Charlotte cruised to an 11-point victory.</p><h2><b>Report: Hornets hold ‘no interest’ in trading LaMelo Ball</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-guard-LaMelo-Ball_95f9d8.jpg"><figcaption>Scott Wachter-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>After the Hornets’ Mark Williams trade to the Lakers collapsed, many anticipated a potential LaMelo Ball trade during this upcoming offseason. However, Ball will be entering his sixth NBA season with the Hornets in 2025-26. At 23, the Hornets will likely want to see the next step in LaMelo’s maturation process.</p><p>Despite Williams’ collapsed deal, <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/44236522/nba-intel-how-7-draft-lottery-teams-jumpstart-their-rebuilds" rel="noopener">sources say</a> the Hornets have no plans on moving on from Ball, per ESPN’s Tim Bomtemps.</p><p>“That [raised] the obvious question: What about LaMelo Ball?” Bontemps said. “Sources said the Hornets have no interest in moving on from their star guard.”</p><p>Still, <a href="https://twitter.com/HornetsReddit/status/1897433984503550160" rel="noopener">trading</a> Ball this summer could be in the best interest of Ball’s success, per NBA insider Michael Sotto.</p><p>“If you were willing to part with Mark Williams, who’s 23 and pretty good. The next logical thing is you’ve got to look at LaMelo Ball, who’s on a max contract,” Sotto said. “They’re (the Hornets) obviously not winning in the foreseeable future. And for LaMelo, he wants to win. How much longer? This is now going be the fifth season. At the end of the day, not winning affected him not being an All-Star with Charlotte.</p><p>“On paper, he had the numbers. He wants to win competitively, from what I’ve been told,” Sotto concluded.</p><p>The Hornets will face the Clippers on Sunday.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

How LaMelo Ball made Hornets history vs. Spurs

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/nba-rumors-hornets-hold-no-interest-lamelo-ball-offseason-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Hornets hold ‘no interest’ in LaMelo Ball offseason trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Jeff-Teague-drops-harsh-LaMelo-Ball-losing-basketball-take.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Hornets hold ‘no interest’ in LaMelo Ball offseason trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-14T14:16:58-07:00">March 14th, 2:16pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-14T14:17:19-07:00">March 14th, 2:17pm</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets aren’t interested in moving on from LaMelo Ball. Despite the reports of Ball wanting to be in a winning situation, per Michael Scotto,  ESPN’s Tim Bontemps sources have declared they have “no interest” <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/44236522/nba-intel-how-7-draft-lottery-teams-jumpstart-their-rebuilds#cha" rel="noopener">in moving on</a> from their franchise player when discussing the Hornets’ future.</p><p>“That raises the obvious question: What about LaMelo Ball,” Bontemps said. “Sources said the Hornets have no interest in moving on from their star guard.”</p><p>With Brandon Miller, Tidjane Salaun, and the lottery pick that they will select in the 2025 NBA Draft, the building blocks are falling into place for the Hornets as they continue to build up the rest of their roster.</p><h2><b>Hornets’ LaMelo Ball is still too valuable to trade</b></h2><p>Ball is averaging a career-high 25.5 points per game on 21.8 attempts from the field. His usage rate and scoring have taken a step up due to the injuries to the roster and the lack of talent around him, but he’s still been one of the few bright spots for a team that is set to miss the postseason for the ninth straight year. He fits today’s ideal fit for what a point guard should look and play like. 6’7, versatile handle, creative finisher, and is a threat from deep.</p><p>It’s hard to find players with that offensive skillset and the Hornets are likely aware of this. Keeping him on the roster with Brandon Miller and the rest of the young assets still screams good potential. For a player of his caliber in the right system, he can flourish. It will take some time in Charlotte, but <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-further-update-long-term-future-in-charlotte">he’s still too important to give up</a> on this early in his career. He’s still just 23 years old.</p><p>Hornets general manager Jeff Peterson has made interesting deals for assets, which have caught the attention of anonymous scouts around the league. One called Peterson’s moves as the GM “shrewd” as he continues to compile veterans around Charlotte’s young core. With more moves to come, one thing could be certain: <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-future-charlotte">LaMelo Ball is still part of the team’s future</a>.</p><p> </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Hornets hold ‘no interest’ in LaMelo Ball offseason trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/sneakers/lamelo-ball-claims-golden-child-status-with-puma-mb-04-release');   ga('set', 'title', 'LaMelo Ball claims ‘Golden Child’ status with latest Puma MB.04 sneakers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/LaMelo-Ball-claims-Golden-Child-status-with-latest-Puma-MB.jpg"></figure><h1>LaMelo Ball claims ‘Golden Child’ status with latest Puma MB.04 sneakers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-12T08:56:13-07:00">March 12th, 8:56am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-12T08:56:30-07:00">March 12th, 8:56am</time><address><a>Dominik Zawartko</a>Dominik Zawartko is a Michigan State graduate with a degree in Political Science and English. Having previously worked in the nonprofit and legal sectors, he decided to pursue his true love of writing with ClutchPoints. Dominik's hobbies include painting, cooking food, training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and always having a laugh. His main focus areas are UFC coverage and all things sneakers.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Charlotte Hornets’ franchise star LaMelo Ball has never been one to shy away from the spotlight and his father, LaVar Ball, has known all along that LaMelo would eventually become the best Ball brother on an NBA stage. He’ll see yet another release of his signature Puma MB.04, known to have some of the more wild colorways among other signature shoes around the NBA. This next release will play into his “Golden Child” persona as he continues to carve a path in the league.</p><p><i><b>Check our <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sneakers">Sneakers news</a> for more upcoming releases and breaking content!</b></i></p><p>LaMelo Ball first signed with Puma back in 2021 following his Rookie of the Year campaign for Charlotte. It wasn’t long until the two sides released his first signature shoe, the MB.01. Since then, Puma has expanded Ball’s signature to four standalone silhouettes, the latest being the MB.04.</p><p>Always releasing in a unique colorway, with collabs ranging from <a href="https://stockx.com/puma-lamelo-ball-mb04-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-leonardo-and-michelangelo">Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles</a> to <a href="https://stockx.com/puma-lamelo-ball-mb04-scooby-doo">Scooby Doo</a>, this latest gold-clad pair will offer a more regal look to match Ball’s silky play on the court.</p><h2>Puma MB.04 “Golden Child”</h2><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">PUMA MB.04 “Golden Child” 🏆</p><p>COMING SOON: <a href="https://t.co/MT5vSz3liL">https://t.co/MT5vSz3liL</a> <a href="https://t.co/I1GjYEfQUa">pic.twitter.com/I1GjYEfQUa</a></p><p>— Sneaker Bar Detroit (@SBDetroit) <a href="https://twitter.com/SBDetroit/status/1882890299904811331?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 24, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Everything <a href="https://twitter.com/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MELOD1P</a> touches turns to gold.</p><p>See for yourself with the MB.04 Golden Child available March 14. <a href="https://t.co/F0xgCntHOr">pic.twitter.com/F0xgCntHOr</a></p><p>— PUMA Basketball (@PUMAHoops) <a href="https://twitter.com/PUMAHoops/status/1898035799070756981?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 7, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><br>The “Golden Child” <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/lamelo-ball-puma-unveil-the-newest-puma-mb-04">Puma MB.04</a> will arrive in <em>PUMA Gold/Matte PUMA Gold-PUMA Black </em>for a shimmering ensemble resembling Ball’s golden touch with a basketball. The shoes feature intricate patterning throughout and spell out the theme “One of One” throughout the shoes. We see different shades of gold throughout the midsole and outsole, matching other aspects like the tongue and back heel. We see Ball’s La France logo in black on the back heel along with his Puma logo along the tongue. The laces finish the look in gold for a monochromatic look.</p></figure><p>The Puma MB.04 “Golden Child” will be available for purchase on March 14, 2025 for a retail tag of $125. The shoes will drop via <a href="https://us.puma.com/us/en">PUMA</a> and will be available at select Puma Basketball retailers.</p><p>What do you think of this latest release from LaMelo Ball?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

LaMelo Ball claims ‘Golden Child’ status with latest Puma MB.04 sneakers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/is-lamelo-ball-playing-tonight-cavs-hornets-injury-report');   ga('set', 'title', 'Is LaMelo Ball playing tonight? Cavs vs. Hornets injury report');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Is-LaMelo-Ball-playing-tonight-Cavs-vs.-Hornets-injury-report.jpg"></figure><h1>Is LaMelo Ball playing tonight? Cavs vs. Hornets injury report</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-07T10:12:19-08:00">March 7th, 10:12am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-07T10:12:19-08:00">March 7th, 10:12am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Cleveland <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/betting/cavaliers-vs-hornets-prediction-odds-pick-spread-3-7-2025">Cavs visit the Charlotte Hornets on Friday</a> night. LaMelo Ball is on the <a href="https://ak-static.cms.nba.com/referee/injury/Injury-Report_2025-03-07_11AM.pdf" rel="noopener">injury report</a> alongside Jusuf Nurkic, with both players listed as probable. Ball is dealing with an illness, while Nurkic has low back tightness after going for two points and five rebounds against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Here’s everything we know about LaMelo Ball’s injury and his playing status vs. the Cavs.</p><p><i><b>*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV <a href="https://www.fubo.tv/lp/nba/?irad=356361&amp;irmp=492408" rel="noopener sponsored">(Get Access | Save $30)</a>*</b></i></p><h2><b>LaMelo Ball injury status vs. Cavs</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-guard-LaMelo-Ball.jpg"><figcaption>Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Given LaMelo Ball is probable on the injury report, the assumption is he will be suiting up against the Cavs. Ball led the Hornets in their 125-110 loss to the Hornets, scoring 28 points, including four threes. He also finished with 10 rebounds and six assists.</p><p>The Hornets will have a great test on Friday when they face the team with the best record in the NBA, the Cavs, who are 3-0 this season against the Hornets. Ball finished with 24 points and four assists in a 115-105 loss, which was their last meeting on January 5. All-Star Darius Garland (25 points) led the Cavs to victory, and Jarrett Allen notched a double-double (19 points, 11 rebounds).</p><p>Since the All-Star break, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-further-update-long-term-future-in-charlotte">Ball hasn’t been as dominant for the Hornets</a> but followed up his 25 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists in a 119-101 loss to the Golden State Warriors with another solid performance in the Hornets’ loss to the Timberwolves. Ball is averaging the most points (26.2) of his career this season while shooting at a 40.8% clip from the floor. However, his three-point shooting percentage (33.6%) is at its lowest, while Ball is averaging 7.0 assists, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game.</p><p>The Hornets are on an eight-game losing streak with the second-worst record (14-47) in the Eastern Conference. The Cavs enter Friday’s matchup on a 12-game winning streak and with a 7.5-game lead atop the standings. </p><p>So, when it comes to whether LaMelo Ball will play tonight against the Cavs, the answer is most likely. </p><h2><b>Hornets injury report</b></h2><p>LaMelo Ball — Illness (probable)</p><p>Josh Green — Illness (probable)</p><p>Brandon Miller — Right wrist ligament (OUT)</p><p>Jusuf Nurkic — Low back tightness (probable)</p><p>Josh Okogie — Left hamstring strain (OUT)</p><p>Nick Smith Jr. — Right quad contusion (probable)</p><p>Mark Williams — Left foot injury management (OUT)</p><h2><b>Cavs injury report</b></h2><p>No injuries to report.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Is LaMelo Ball playing tonight? Cavs vs. Hornets injury report

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-further-update-long-term-future-in-charlotte');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets’ LaMelo Ball gets further update on long-term future in Charlotte');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-news-LaMelo-Ball-gets-further-update-on-long-term-future-in-Charlotte-1.jpg"></figure><h1>Hornets’ LaMelo Ball gets further update on long-term future in Charlotte</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-05T18:02:53-08:00">March 5th, 6:02pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-05T18:03:36-08:00">March 5th, 6:03pm</time><address><a>Dylan Fine</a>Dylan Fine focuses on the NFL and NCAA Football for ClutchPoints, in addition to working on the meme team. Dylan is a graduate of Georgetown University and has covered various topics ranging from local politics in the DMV region with DC Voter For Animals to live sporting events in the Long Island and Rochester areas with The Southampton Press and Pickin’Splinters. When he isn't working, he's usually running in preparation for the next annual Turkey Trot.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Charlotte Hornets star LaMelo Ball received a concerning update on his long-term future with the franchise. The Hornets are in the middle of another disappointing season, ranking near the bottom of the Eastern Conference. At 14-46 overall, Charlotte’s season was all but over when forward <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-brandon-miller-miss-remainder-of-season-wrist-surgery">Brandon Miller was ruled out</a> for the year with a wrist injury in January. Excluding the Play-In, the Hornets have not made the playoffs since 2016, the longest current drought in the NBA.</p><p>Even though he recently signed a contract extension with the franchise, there might be some trouble brewing with LaMelo Ball’s future with the organization. Senior NBA Insider Michael Scotto <a href="https://x.com/HornetsReddit/status/1897433984503550160" rel="noopener">broke down the situation</a> in Charlotte and Ball’s current outlook in an interview with Sportsnet.</p><p>“If you were willing to part with Mark Williams, who’s 23 and pretty good. The next logical thing is you’ve got to look at LaMelo Ball, who’s on a max contract. They’re (the Hornets) obviously not winning in the foreseeable future. And for LaMelo, he wants to win. How much longer? This is now going be the fifth season. At the end of the day, not winning affected him not being an All-Star with Charlotte. On paper, he had the numbers. He wants to win competitively, from what I’ve been told.”</p><h2><b>Charlotte’s murky future might lead to some more drastic moves</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-LaMelo-Ball.jpg"><figcaption>Scott Kinser-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The fact of the matter is that Charlotte is in line to get a top-three pick in this draft, which could immediately reshape its future. This NBA Draft is supposed to be an elite one, and if the Hornets were to, by chance, win the lottery and add Duke star Cooper Flagg, the sky would be the limit going forward. LaMelo Ball won’t be requesting a trade anytime soon if that happens. But right now, this team, which came into the season with some expectations, has underperformed again and is looking for direction in head coach Charles Lee’s first year.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-max-extension-contract-details">Ball signed a five-year contract in 2023</a> that just kicked in this season. There’s no reason for the Hornets to trade their 23-year-old point guard right now. But LaMelo’s impatience is understandable right now. Even though, one thing that will mitigate the losing is if the star point guard is more available healthwise going forward. Over the past two seasons, Ball did not play more than 36 games in a season. So far this year, he’s played just 38 of 60 games.</p><p>Still, it goes without saying that LaMelo needs more help and some assurances from the organization that it can be competitive in the near future. It would be a real shame to see this partnership fail, as Ball has the potential to be the greatest Charlotte Hornet ever.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets’ LaMelo Ball gets further update on long-term future in Charlotte

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-future-charlotte');   ga('set', 'title', 'LaMelo Ball’s future with Hornets not solidified');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-LaMelo-Balls-future-in-Charlotte-not-solidified.jpg"></figure><h1>LaMelo Ball’s future with Hornets not solidified</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-04T10:30:16-08:00">March 4th, 10:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-04T10:30:16-08:00">March 4th, 10:30am</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>According to Michael Scotto of hoopshype.com, Charlotte Hornets star LaMelo Ball is <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/nba-intel-jimmy-butler-trae-young-lamelo-ball-mark-williams-brandon-ingram-kyle-kuzma-raptors-wizards-76ers-mavericks/" rel="noopener">likely to be</a> in trade rumors heading into the offseason. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/lakers-news-mavericks-luka-doncic-anthony-davis-trade">Dallas Mavericks moved on from Luka Doncic</a> due to the franchise’s concern with his conditioning and injury history. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-out-warriors">Ball’s injury history</a> is just as lengthy as Doncic’s at this point, so Charlotte could potentially pivot during the offseason.</p><h2><b>Predicting LaMelo Ball’s future</b></h2><p>Through 60 games, the Hornets have won 14 contests, and Ball has played in 38. He has not impacted winning at this level yet. In fact, in his first five seasons, the Hornets have had one winning season.</p><p>It’s a real possibility that Hornets general manager Jeff Peterson will consider flipping his star player. He’s already proven that he’s not afraid to move on from young core players. Mark Williams would’ve been a member of the Los Angeles Lakers if not for a failed physical.</p><p>Ball has been a bright spot in what’s been a rough season, but his availability would be what gets him shipped out of Charlotte. He’s only played over 60 games once in his career. Franchise players these days need to be durable for the duration of a season and potential postseason run.</p><p>Ball hasn’t been able to do that thus far. Selling his stock while it’s high could be the next move for Peterson. A 23 year old, a 6’7 point guard who can score and play-make at a high level can be moved for a plethora of assets.</p><h2><b>Hornets roster construction</b></h2><p>If LaMelo Ball is moved, that would open the door for anyone on the roster to be traded as well. It could be safe to assume that Mark Williams could be back on the trading block after that awkward rescinded trade moment. Miles Bridges could be apart of a deal to a contender potentially as well.</p><p>He’s played well in Brandon Miller’s absence as the number two option and contenders could come calling in the summer if he continues to play well. Everyone, but maybe Miller could be made available.</p><p>The Hornets could shift their focus to Miller as the franchise centerpiece instead of Ball, prioritizing a two-way wing that has shown flashes of being a number one option. Before his wrist injury, he was putting career-highs across the board. So maybe the assets from some of the deals could fill out the rest of the roster to find another productive guard or big man.</p><p>There’s also the NBA Draft as well, as the Hornets could bring in young players to add around Miller and watch them all grow together.</p><h2><b>If the Hornets are going to, it has to be now</b></h2><p>No need to wait for change if it’s inevitable. Unless the Hornets have a plan to put a big time name next to Ball and the rest of the core, doing these trades now would make the most sense. There’s already potential landing spots for LaMelo Ball. If they don’t believe that Ball could contribute to winning, maybe it’s best to part ways.</p><p>However, the Hornets could also stick with their core group of guys and just look to build the roster in the off season. With all the players mentioned, Bridges is the oldest at 26 years old. Charlotte could be a veteran piece or two away from being a playoff team.</p><p>The Detroit Pistons added Tobias Harris, Malik Beasley, and Tim Hardaway Jr. to their young core and they look like a lock for the postseason in 2025. Time to see if Jeff Peterson wants to be patient or reset his young core.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

LaMelo Ball’s future with Hornets not solidified

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-why-lamelo-ball-optimistic-despite-loss-stephen-curry-warriors');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why LaMelo Ball is still ‘optimistic’ despite Hornets loss to Stephen Curry, Warriors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hornets-news-Why-LaMelo-Ball-is-still-optimistic-despite-loss-to-Stephen-Curry-Warriors.jpg"></figure><h1>Why LaMelo Ball is still ‘optimistic’ despite Hornets loss to Stephen Curry, Warriors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-03T21:27:33-08:00">March 3rd, 9:27pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-03T21:27:33-08:00">March 3rd, 9:27pm</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets lost their seventh straight game after<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/golden-state-warriors/warriors-news-stephen-curry-joins-extremely-exclusive-steve-nash-club-after-21-point-night"> falling to Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors</a> 119-101. The Hornets have struggled to string wins together, <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CHO/2025.html" rel="noopener">dropping 16 of their last 18 games</a>.</p><p>Discussing the game’s outcome, LaMelo Ball felt like they still needed to figure out who they were, and that could help them string some wins together.</p><h2><b>LaMelo Ball keeps it real about the Hornets’ identity</b></h2><p>After pouring in 25 points in a loss, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/nba-rumors-lamelo-ball-miles-bridges-trade-watch-hornets-struggles-continue">Ball spoke about what needs to change or improve w</a>i<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/nba-rumors-lamelo-ball-miles-bridges-trade-watch-hornets-struggles-continue">th Charlotte</a>.</p><p>“I feel like we’ve just got to find our identity – see what we’re going to do, see the shots we want, and then go for those shots,” Ball said. “I like to push fast, play fast pace.”</p><p>Transition buckets do naturally make the game a little easier. Scoring while the defense is still trying to get back in their sets would generate easier offense. That faster pace after a miss would fit Ball’s play style, but without the right personnel, it’s hard to produce success with it. Plus, once teams decide to get to the other end of the floor after a missed shot, it becomes predictable.</p><p>With Brandon Miller out, the team’s offense is heavily reliant on <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-breaks-luka-doncic-ankles-viral-video">Ball’s scoring and playmaking prowess.</a> Miles Bridges has also stepped up his scoring since the injury. Against the Warriors, he poured in 35 points of his own, which led all scorers. Unfortunately, the Hornets have lost their last nine games when he’s scored 30 or more.</p><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/LaMelo-Ball-drives.jpg"><figcaption>David Richard-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h2><b>Hornets fall to 0-2 on their five-game home stand</b></h2><p>On the bright side, the Hornets have a shot at redemption in front of their home fans for the next three games. Despite the struggle to win consecutive games, the Hornets have kept games close throughout before things open up in the fourth quarter. Even against the Warriors, it was a seven-point deficit until Golden State opened up the game in the final two minutes of the quarter.</p><p>Finding a way to stay consistent would be the key to finishing off games where they are within striking distance of a win. Bridges spoke on his team’s fight in that third quarter.</p><p>“Just us competing,” Bridges said. “We competed again, gave ourselves a chance. We turned the ball over a lot though, missed a lot of free throws. Steph [Curry] got wide open a lot, but we gave ourselves a chance, so we can be happy with that.”</p><p>Everything stems back to what Ball said about finding an identity. It’s been hard to do with all the injuries, but that should be the goal for the rest of the season. Finding out who they really are.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why LaMelo Ball is still ‘optimistic’ despite Hornets loss to Stephen Curry, Warriors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/golden-state-warriors/warriors-news-gary-payton-jr-breaks-silence-injury-suffered-incident-lamelo-ball');   ga('set', 'title', 'Warriors’ Gary Payton II breaks silence on injury suffered after incident with LaMelo Ball');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Warriors-news-Gary-Payton-Jr.-breaks-silence-on-injury-suffered-after-incident-with-LaMelo-Ball.jpg"></figure><h1>Warriors’ Gary Payton II breaks silence on injury suffered after incident with LaMelo Ball</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-03T20:32:36-08:00">March 3rd, 8:32pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-04T09:13:29-08:00">March 4th, 9:13am</time><address><a>Richard Pereira</a>Richard Pereira joined ClutchPoints in January 2025 as an Associate Editor. He earned his degree from Florida Atlantic University in 2023 and has been covering the school's athletic programs since 2020, having served as a Sports Editor at the FAU University Press. He was granted the unique opportunity to report on the men's basketball team's journey to the Final Four in Houston for FAU Owls Nest during March Madness, consistently striving to grow as a sports journalist.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Gary Payton II had a tough moment <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/warriors-gary-payton-jr-leaves-hornets-game-with-apparent-injury">happen to him and LaMelo Ball</a> during the Golden State Warriors’ matchup with the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night.</p><p>Payton drew a charge against the Hornets star, who hit him in the face. As a result, the Warriors guard appeared to be bleeding as he went to the locker room with a towel on his face. He wouldn’t take part in the remainder of the game, finishing his day after 10 minutes of action.</p><p>Payton <a href="https://x.com/anthonyVslater/status/1896759299189444963" rel="noopener">revealed an update on his health</a> after the game, per The Athletic’s Anthony Slater. Payton said he will be hopeful for the team’s next game, having a visible cut on his nose.</p><p>“Gary Payton II had a cut on his nose postgame but said he’d be fine. Hopes to play tomorrow in New York. Left tonight’s game after taking a hit from LaMelo Ball,” Slater reported.</p><h2><b>How Gary Payton II, Warriors played against Hornets</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Gary-payton.jpg"><figcaption>Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Even though Gary Payton II couldn’t play his usual workload due to the injury, the Golden State <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/editorials/warriors-vs-hornets-prediction-odds-pick-spread-3-3-2025">Warriors took care of business by winning 119-101</a> over the Charlotte Hornets.</p><p>The Warriors took a 28-21 lead after the first quarter, having the momentum throughout the course of the game. They added more distance in the last 12 minutes, outscoring their opponents 33-24 to seal the win.</p><p>Buddy Hield led the team in scoring with 22 points and five rebounds off the bench. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/warriors-news-stephen-curry-joins-extremely-exclusive-steve-nash-club-after-21-point-night">Stephen Curry came next</a> with 21 points and 10 assists. Brandin Podziemski had 19 points and 11 rebounds. Draymond Green put up 16 points and 12 rebounds, while Jimmy Butler put up 13 points.</p><p>Golden State improved to 33-28 on the season, jumping over the Los Angeles Clippers for the sixth spot in the Western Conference standings. They are now four games behind the Houston Rockets and five games behind the Memphis Grizzlies.</p><p>Following Monday’s win over the Hornets, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/editorials/warriors-vs-knicks-prediction-odds-pick-spread-3-4-2025">Warriors will prepare for their next matchup</a> being on the road. They face the New York Knicks on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Warriors’ Gary Payton II breaks silence on injury suffered after incident with LaMelo Ball

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/nba-rumors-lamelo-ball-miles-bridges-trade-watch-hornets-struggles-continue');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges on trade watch as Hornets’ struggles continue');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/LaMelo-Ball-Miles-Bridges-on-trade-watch-as-Hornets-struggles-continue.jpg"></figure><h1>NBA rumors: LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges on trade watch as Hornets’ struggles continue</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-03T13:06:53-08:00">March 3rd, 1:06pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-03T13:06:53-08:00">March 3rd, 1:06pm</time><address><a href="https://medium.com/bingeable">Sonny Giuliano</a>Sonny Giuliano is an experienced sports writer for ClutchPoints who has been covering the NFL, NCAA Football, NBA, and NCAA Basketball for well over a decade. Originally from the small town of Elba, New York, Sonny received his degree from Florida Gulf Coast University and currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The last time that the Charlotte Hornets played a postseason game was in May 2016. Steve Clifford was in his <i>first tenure </i>as Charlotte’s head coach, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cavaliers-news-ty-lue-untold-lebron-james-nba-finals-story">LeBron James had not yet brought a title to Cleveland</a>, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/warriors-news-kevin-durant-mocks-meme">Kevin Durant had not yet decided that his next chapter</a> would take place with the Golden State Warriors. Nearly nine years later, the Hornets seem further away from returning to the postseason than ever, struggling to a 14-45 record, failing to even compete for a Play-In berth.</p><p>This puts the Charlotte Hornets in a position they should be accustomed to at this point… scrambling to figure out what’s next. Given how unsuccessful this last half of a decade has been, it would wise for this franchise, which has never been further than the 2nd round of the Playoffs, to consider all options. That includes <a href="https://hoopshype.com/lists/nba-intel-jimmy-butler-trae-young-lamelo-ball-mark-williams-brandon-ingram-kyle-kuzma-raptors-wizards-76ers-mavericks/" rel="noopener">gauging the trade value</a> of lead guard LaMelo Ball.</p><p>“The availability of Hornets guard LaMelo Ball is one of the stars several executives who spoke with HoopsHype will be monitoring on the trade market this summer,” writes Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. “If Charlotte puts Ball on the trade market, the Hornets could kick start a complete tear-down rebuild by trading him and clearing his maximum salary off the books long-term while adding cheaper young talent and several future first-round draft picks.”</p><p>LaMelo Ball’s injury-plagued career has been limited to 221 games in which the Hornets have gone 95-126 with no postseason appearances. He’s proven to be wildly popular among kids who don’t sit down and watch full NBA games, but for <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-miles-bridges-hook-up-for-highlight-dunk">every highlight reel play he’s made</a>, he’s bricked at least one ill-advised three-pointer.</p><p>You can point to Ball’s 26 points and 7 assists per game and say he deserved to be an All-Star. But don’t ignore these numbers: the Hornets are 29th in offensive rating during the 2024-25 season, and have been bottom three in the league in that category in each of the last three seasons. LaMelo Ball has a resume that screams, “Good stats, bad team,” and as more time goes by, it seems as if that is going to be his basketball destiny. Not ideal for a guy picked 3rd in the NBA Draft.</p><p>Ball isn’t the only member of the Hornets that Scotto mentions as a possible offseason trade candidate. Miles Bridges has two years left on his existing deal, and his cap hit isn’t too much of an issue. Domestic violence charges put a damper — and a one season pause — on what at one time looked to be a tremendously promising NBA career.</p><p>Bridges has been a 20 point per game scorer each of his last three seasons, but on just 43 percent shooting during the 2024-25 season, how far are you getting if you’re relying on him <i>too much</i>?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges on trade watch as Hornets’ struggles continue

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-is-lamelo-ball-playing-vs-wizards-latest-update');   ga('set', 'title', 'Is Hornets’ LaMelo Ball playing vs. Wizards? Latest injury update');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Charlotte-cautiously-optimistic-about-LaMelo-Balls-ankle-injury.jpg"></figure><h1>Is Hornets’ LaMelo Ball playing vs. Wizards? Latest injury update</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-01T07:33:14-08:00">March 1st, 7:33am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-01T07:33:14-08:00">March 1st, 7:33am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets will host the Washington Wizards on Saturday at Spectrum Center. LaMelo Ball <a href="https://ak-static.cms.nba.com/referee/injury/Injury-Report_2025-03-01_09AM.pdf" rel="noopener">is questionable on the team’s injury report</a> due to right ankle soreness.</p><p>Here’s everything we know about Ball’s injury and playing status vs. the Wizards.</p><p><i><b>*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV <a href="https://www.fubo.tv/lp/nba/?irad=356361&amp;irmp=492408" rel="noopener sponsored">(Get Access | Save $30)</a>*</b></i></p><h2>LaMelo Ball injury status vs. Wizards</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/LaMelo-Ball-dribbling.jpg"><figcaption>Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-out-warriors">Ball has missed the Hornets’ last two games</a> due to a right ankle ailment he has been battling throughout the season. Charlotte listed him as questionable for Thursday’s 103-96 loss to the Dallas Mavericks before ruling him out.</p><p>Another questionable tag for Friday’s matchup gives Ball a chance to return against the Wizards.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-ankle-injury-out-indefinitely">Ball has had issues with his right ankle</a> throughout his Hornets career. The 23-year-old underwent surgery on the ankle in March of 2023, causing him to miss the remainder of the 2022-23 season. He’s appeared in 36 of 58 games this season.</p><p>Ball has averaged a career-high 26.3 points on 41/33/83 shooting splits with 7.1 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 3.4 turnovers per game. However, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-jeff-teague-drops-harsh-lamelo-ball-losing-basketball-take">Hornets are entrenched in the tank race</a> for Cooper Flagg as the season winds down. Charlotte has lost 14 of its last 16 games, posting the NBA’s worst net rating (-15.2) by a wide margin during that span.</p><p>Friday’s matchup has draft lottery implications, as the Hornets are four games behind the Wizards for the NBA’s worst record. Washington has lost seven of its last eight games following a three-game win streak in early February.</p><p>Jusuf Nurkic (illness) and Tidjane Salaun (right ankle sprain) are questionable for the Hornets on Friday. Josh Okogie (left hamstring strain), Tre Mann (disc herniation), and Wendell Moore Jr. (concussion protocol) will be sidelined.</p><p>Alex Sarr (left ankle sprain) is questionable for the Wizards. Jordan Poole (right elbow hyperextension) and Malcolm Brogdon (left ankle sprain) are out.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Is Hornets’ LaMelo Ball playing vs. Wizards? Latest injury update

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-out-warriors');   ga('set', 'title', 'LaMelo Ball ruled out vs. Warriors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/LaMelo-Ball-out-at-least-one-week-with-ankle-sprain.jpg"></figure><h1>LaMelo Ball ruled out vs. Warriors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-02-25T13:51:40-08:00">February 25th, 1:51pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-02-25T13:51:40-08:00">February 25th, 1:51pm</time><address><a>David Yapkowitz</a>David Yapkowitz is an NBA Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He is a credentialed reporter based in Los Angeles who covers the NBA/WNBA, NCAA/NCAAW and boys/girls high school basketball.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets have an All-Star caliber guard in <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/entertainment/lamelo-ball-leads-eastern-conference-backcourt-in-first-all-star-votes-return">LaMelo Ball, who was among the top vote getters by fans for the All-Star Game</a>. The one issue the Hornets seem to have though is keeping LaMelo Ball injury free. Ball was <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1894494619477357007" rel="noopener">recently ruled out</a> for the Hornets’ game against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday due to injury.</p><p>LaMelo Ball has been dealing with a right ankle injury this season, but it appears as if he is sitting out the Hornets’ game against the Warriors as part of the team’s efforts to manage said injury. The team officially listed Ball on <a href="https://x.com/HornetsPR/status/1894492940581704063" rel="noopener">their injury report</a> as out due to injury management.</p><p>Tuesday’s game against the Hornets is the second night of a back-to-back after the team played against the Sacramento Kings on Monday. Ball also sat out the second game of a back-to-back last week when the Hornets traveled to Denver to face the Nuggets following their win against the Los Angeles Lakers.</p><p>During that win against the Lakers, Ball was brilliant in the clutch, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-breaks-luka-doncic-ankles-viral-video">including a sick crossover on Luka Doncic</a> that went viral. He finished that game with 27 points, five rebounds, six assists and one steal.</p><p>While Ball has dealt with the ankle injury this season, he’s on pace to appear in the most number of games he’s played since the 2021-22 season, which coincidently, was his All-Star season. He suited up in 75 games that year en route to his first All-Star appearance.</p><p>This year, Ball has played in 36 games, with 26 games remaining including Tuesday’s matchup against the Warriors. He was limited to only 22 games last season, and 36 in 2022-23. Barring any unforeseen shutdown, he should surpass those game totals.</p><p>He’s been averaging a career-high 26.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 1.3 steals with splits of 41.1 percent shooting from the field, 33.3 percent shooting from the three-point line and 83 percent shooting from the free-throw line.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
25.2	4.9	7.4	0.3	1.1

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
25.2	4.9	7.4	0.3	1.1

LaMelo Ball news

LaMelo
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