LaMelo Ball has put up counting stats this season when on the court, averaging 21.6 points, 9.6 assists and 6.9 rebounds a game in the nine games he has played. That said, he is shooting just 38.5% from the floor — 29.8% from 3-point range. He has helped make the Hornets competitive in games, but still they have stumbled to a 4-11 start to the season.
Which is why there is some logic to the idea that Ball would be open to a trade, maybe around the February deadline, and Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports reported that he is.
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Star guard LaMelo Ball has grown increasingly frustrated with the organization and is open to a trade away from the franchise, multiple league sources told Yahoo Sports … League sources say the front office is increasingly hesitant about cementing Ball as a long-term foundational piece, has become disillusioned with the 24-year-old and is open to moving him.
LaMelo responded to that on X, shooting the idea down.
If that response doesn’t make it clear, Ball has not asked for a trade. What’s more, the Hornets front office is not looking to move Ball right now, reports Jake Fischer at Bleacher Report. Understandably, Charlotte wants to get Brandon Miller back from his shoulder issue and see what this team looks like when fully healthy (they may be 4-11, but they have played more competitively than their record suggests).
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That said, there are playoff teams in need of point guard play — Orlando, maybe Houston and others — who are monitoring the situation. There would be a market for Ball, although because of his injury history and defensive issues, that trade would not bring back as much as the Hornets may imagine.
It’s not just Ball’s situation that teams are monitoring. The same is true of Ja Morant in Memphis and Trae Young in Atlanta, both of them are currently out injured.
