The Charlotte Hornets have not been in the postseason with LaMelo Ball as their best player. In his young career, Ball has dealt with various injuries that have set him back from playing close to a full season. The most games he’s played in a season was during the 2021-22 campaign, which was his second year in the NBA. He played 75 games that year, averaging 20.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 7.6 assists as a first-time All-Star.
On Thursday, his former teammate Gordon Hayward appeared as a guest on FanDuel TV’s “Run It Back.” Hayward played with Ball for almost four seasons but failed to help the Hornets make it to the postseason. During his guest appearance, he talked about what he thinks the young guard should do for the organization.
“LaMelo and I still text from time to time and me and him have always been really cool. So, I respect him and I think it’s — as we see with the Luka [Doncic] trade, nobody is safe,” Hayward said.
“For him, I think he needs to focus on getting himself right so he can play as many games as he can. From a franchise situation, they gotta figure out, can we win and can we build around this guy? I think that’s a question that they have to try ti figure out. It’s been tough sledding in Charlotte with the amount of injuries, even when I was playing there… But that’s a decision they got to try to figure out.
“From a franchise situation, they got to figure out can we win and can we build around this guy?” 👀
Gordon Hayward says the question still remains whether or not the Hornets can win with LaMelo Ball at the head of the franchise!
Would you build around LaMelo?@MichelleDBeadle… pic.twitter.com/eBXhCeC7hB
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) March 13, 2025
Hayward believes Ball needs to get his body right and prove that the Charlotte Hornets made the right decision by making him the franchise leader.
“If I’m LaMelo, I’m just trying to get myself right, I’m trying to get myself healthy as I can be. Because I got to prove to the league that I can carry a franchise.”
The head coach of the Charlotte Hornets believes Miles Bridges is the team’s leader
While many look to LaMelo Ball to step up and be the team’s leader, some have overlooked Miles Bridges. Like Ball, he’s spent the entirety of his young career with the Hornets. The 6-foot-6 forward has six years of experience and the head coach of the Charlotte Hornets, Charles Lee, believes Bridges is the team’s leader.
“I think Miles just personally has taken it upon himself to spark our team with his energy, with his effort, with his communication,” Lee said. “It’s just another example of his leadership taking another step.”
The forward is having the best season of his career, averaging 21.4 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
