In the midst of a statistically impressive season, LaMelo Ball is doing it all for the Charlotte Hornets.
With a smile. Just ask his coach.
“His spirit is so infectious and contagious around our building,” coach Charles Lee said. “There’s just so much joy that he brings. His teammates love him. They love being around him. … He is one of those guys that’s so open-minded to being coached. He’s still hungry to learn.
“And because you’re able to coach your best players hard and consistently, it makes everybody else around him also realize that they can also get coached, too. So, it creates a good environment where I think everybody understands it’s not personal. It’s all in an effort to help us get better.”
That formula is working, with the latest evidence coming in Saturday night’s easy 124-101 triumph over the Memphis Grizzlies at Spectrum Center.
Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball signals his made 3-point basket to a Memphis Grizzlies defender during Saturday’s action at Spectrum Center. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
Ball served as the catalyst, pushing the Hornets (37-34) in a game needed to keep pace with the likes of Atlanta, Orlando, Miami and Philadelphia in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament picture. He posted a game-best 29 points to go with four assists and three rebounds, helping the Hornets climb within 1.5 games of sixth place heading into Saturday night’s late action.
“Him on the defensive side, nobody really talks about it,” Brandon Miller said. “I think everybody always looks at the one-legged threes, the flashy moves, the flashy lobs. The one thing that separates him this season is the defensive effort and the competitor that he is. Just stepping up in tough games and guarding the best players and trying not to foul. It’s him just trying new things.
“So him being open-minded is great for us.”
Ball’s efficient outing came in front of yet another sellout crowd of 19,487, which represented the sixth straight. It was the Hornets’ 18th sellout of the 2025-26 campaign — two more than they had during 2022–23.
The energetic patrons witnessed a workman-like effort.
“I’m proud of our team,” Lee said. “I think that it’s about your mindset because there’s no guarantees. It doesn’t matter what the outside noise and expectations are. There’s no guarantees in sports, and so that’s why you’ve got to go out, you’ve got to play the game. You’ve got to execute, you have to have the appropriate respect for your opponent.
“I thought our team did that from the beginning to the end.”
Chalk it up as more growth for the young Hornets.
“It’s (about) not overlooking a team,” Miller said. “You’ve got to understand that they’re still NBA players. Everything’s not going to be easy. So just kind of go in there with the mindset of just competing at the highest level and just beating the team how we would normally beat a team.
“Just stick to our absolutes, and we’ll be fine.”
Here are some other key takeaways from the Hornets’ third straight win:
Charlotte Hornets forward Kon Knueppel dives out of bounds after attempting to save the ball during Saturday’s action against the Memphis Grizzlies at Spectrum Center. The Hornets defeated the Grizzlies 124-101. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com Keeping Kon fresh
As hard as it may be to believe at times, Kon Knueppel still isn’t even a year removed from competing in the NCAA Tournament. Before the Hornets took on the Grizzlies, he undoubtedly had an eye on the Blue Devils’ eventual second-round win in Greenville over Texas Christian University on Saturday afternoon.
While Knueppel’s former team played its 36th game of the season, the rookie has already nearly doubled that. Knueppel was immersed in Game No. 70. He didn’t have the best of shooting performances, knocking down 3 of 9 attempts, going 1 for 6 beyond the arc, and netting nine points.
It was the first time Knueppel didn’t score in double figures since Nov. 26.
Keeping him as fresh as possible is key for the Hornets down the stretch as they make their push to end the NBA’s longest playoff drought.
“Our group is definitely focused on it,” Lee said. “It helps having a performance staff, a coaching staff that’s been through an 82-game season, and playoffs and deep playoff runs. We’re able to educate him on the importance of recovery and rest. And credit to him, he has listened. I think that he’s done a great job himself of managing the season.”
In other words, it’s a collaboration.
“We try to do it on the front end with how we’re mapping out a practice or how intense practice is that day or what his court load looks like, but then it’s on him,” Lee said. “There’s a ton of time in the NBA where you’re not in the building, and what are you going to do during those periods? I think he’s done a great job of taking care of his body and managing himself mentally and physically be ready to go hoop consistently every night.”
Charlotte Hornets guard Brandon Miller, left, keeps his eyes on the ball as Memphis Grizzlies forward GG Jackson II, right, towers over him during action at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Saturday, March 21, 2026. The Hornets defeated the Grizzlies 124-101. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com What’s working well
Make that victories in five of the last six games for the Hornets.
During this recent stretch, the Hornets have been impressive in a variety of ways, utilizing high defensive intensity and connectedness. They’ve effectively executed specific game plans and the extra attention to detail is also paying dividends.
Offensively, advancements in overall team play, pace and screening have been at the forefront. They’ve responded well to some of Lee’s challenges.
“Coming off that road trip, we talked a ton about playing versus physicality, playing versus pressure,” Lee said. “And they implemented a lot of the things that we worked on in practices and talked about during film. And the ball movement’s been phenomenal.”
The Charlotte Observer
Roderick Boone joined the Observer in September 2021 to cover the Charlotte Hornets and NBA. In his more than two decades of writing about the world of sports, he’s chronicled everything from high school rodeo to a major league baseball no-hitter to the Super Bowl to the Finals. The Long Island native has deep North Carolina roots and enjoys watching “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” endlessly.
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