Long before he entered the league, LaMelo Ball stood out as a basketball phenom, dominating the high school scene in Chino Hills and at Spire Academy with his flashy handles, no-look passes, and explosive scoring outbursts.
Later on, his game carried over to Australia’s NBL league, where he refined his game as a floor general, expanded his offensive skills all-around, had multiple triple-double games, and stamped himself as a top-three pick in the 2020 NBA draft.
After he got selected as the third overall pick by the Charlotte Hornets, Ball was seen as a franchise cornerstone who would turn the whole organization around after decades of mediocrity. Fast forward to today and everybody would disagree that it came true. It’s a fact that Ball has been on a tear individually, averaging 21 points, seven assists, and six rebounds in five seasons and having an All-Star appearance in 2022.
Meanwhile, the Hornets haven’t been as successful. Ball hasn’t been able to stay healthy, battling multiple injuries every year, which sidelines him for half a season or more. With that, his game is labeled as streetball, which doesn’t necessarily translate to winning games; many say he plays for fun and doesn’t care as long as he is filling the stat sheet.
With that being said, many are starting to give up on Ball, and one of those people is a former NBA player, Charlie Villanueva, who shared his opinion on the matter.
“Big year for Melo? He reached his ceiling, how much more he’s gonna do?” Villanueva said on his podcast.
“LaMelo has been LaMelo since fu-king high school. He’s been the same fu-king player the whole time. He’s not gonna change his game. 25, seven and five? So, that’s not his ceiling? That is his ceiling, how much more? 30, 10 and 10? That’s what you need him to average in order for him to win? You’re not winning with him, fu-king kidding me,” he added.
Anti-winning playstyle
Ever since Ball stepped on the scene, his playstyle has been nothing short of entertaining, broken ankles, half-court shots, acrobatic layups, and a unique swagger. What makes him fun to watch also makes it more frustrating. Since Melo can’t play off the ball, he needs the ball to be effective, and the only way he knows how to play is in a streetball way to showcase his skills.
That leads him to often overdribble and run out the clock, which in turn results in bad passes, contested shots, and multiple turnovers per game. You can rarely see Ball driving to the basket without a fancy dribble move or shooting a normal catch-and-shoot three. The main problem is that he played like this his whole life; that’s his footing, and good luck trying to change that.
You can’t deny the talent Melo has, and the stats show it along with the eye test. But, this kind of playstyle isn’t built for winning, and Ball doesn’t seem like he will change it anytime soon, not at least while he’s still with the Hornets. Since they have no real direction as a franchise, Ball can do whatever he wants on the court, which leads many people to say that he is putting up empty stats.
Health problems
What seems to be a pattern with Ball is his unreliable health, mainly revolving around his ankles. He has had multiple ankle injuries, which have kept him out for at least 25 games in the past three seasons, with the worst occurring during the 2022-23 season, when he suffered four ankle injuries.
Also, he has had problems with wrist injuries, having a fracture in 2021, undergoing a procedure this past season, and multiple cases of soreness. A statistic from January 2025 says Ball has missed 158 games due to injury, and that statistic has grown more since then. His underlying health issues, specifically ankle injuries, are concerning.
However, Melo is still young and entering his prime; there is still time to fix these problems. Stephen Curry is the prime example of someone who battled the same issues and from whom Melo should take notes.
Even though Ball has a lot of problems to fix, the whole blame can’t be put on him. The Hornets are a laughing stock of the league, having shown multiple times that they fail to maximize their stars’ potential by refusing to build an adequate team around them. The primary example is Kemba Walker. When you’re drafted to a franchise like that, it’s hard to change the culture, and honestly, who can blame him?
If Ball is willing to get out of Charlotte and adapt his game to a winning franchise, the sky is the limit for him, because he has all the talent in the world to back it up. But, if he isn’t willing to do what it takes, he will just be another ‘what if’, and there’s plenty of that in the NBA.