Ball has shown immense promise in fantasy, but the past two seasons have been riddled with recurring ankle injuries. The 23-year-old has played only 58 total games during this stretch, but he put up impressive averages of 23.5 points and 3.7 threes on 42/37/85 shooting, 8.3 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 34.1 minutes. The 2021-22 All-Star has 10 career triple-doubles in 184 games, showing off his versatility. It hasn't led to winning, though. That, combined with Ball's injuries, are the primary criticisms of the No. 3 overall pick from 2020. Last season was highlighted more by the return of Miles Bridges and the emergence of then-rookie Brandon Miller in the second half of the campaign. Both players are back for 2024-25, and Ball could be asked to share more touches with Miller, but as it stands, Ball is still the engine of the team. If injuries weren't a factor, Ball would likely be an automatic first-round selection. Managers will have to decide how to weigh the past couple years of injury trouble with his youth and upside. Read Past Outlooks
$Signed a five-year, $205.9 million contract extension with the Hornets in July of 2023.
Personal Bio/PreCareer Summary
LaMelo was born Aug. 22, 2001 in Chino Hills, California. He's the son of LaVar and Tina Ball, who both played college basketball. LaMelo's brother, Lonzo is an NBA point guard, while his other brother, LiAngelo has played professionally. Ball is part of the Facebook Watch reality show called "Ball in the Family", which shows the life of the Ball family. The Big Baller Brand, a sports apparel company founded by Ball's family, has released a signature shoe for LaMelo titled the Melo Ball 1. He's the youngest athlete in history to have a signature shoe. Prior to the NBA, Ball played professionally in Lithuania and Australia. Ball did not attend college and opted to play basketball internationally instead. He began in 2017-18 with Vytautas Prienu of the Lithuanian LKL. He appeared in eight games (one start), averaging 6.5 points, 2.4 assists and 1.1 rebounds in 12.8 minutes. His best performance with the team was against Zalgiris, where Ball recorded 19 points (6-11 FG, 4-7 3Pt, 3-4 FT), six assists and one steal in 28 minutes. Ball's next contract came with Illawarra in the Australian NBL. There, he started all 13 of his appearances, where he averaged 17.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.5 steals in 31.3 minutes. His best performance was a win over Cairns, where Ball posted 32 points (11-20 FG, 4-7 3Pt, 6-8 FT), 13 assists, 11 rebounds and one steal in 40 minutes.
Expected to be ready for camp
GCharlotte Hornets
Ankle
April 15, 2024
Hornets head coach Steve Clifford said Monday that he expects Ball (ankle) to be full healthy in advance of training camp, Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer reports.
ANALYSIS Right ankle injuries cost Ball the majority of the 2023-24 season, with the point guard making just 22 appearances and averaging 23.9 points, 8.0 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 3.2 three-pointers and 1.8 steals in 32.3 minutes. Ball said that the ankle is feeling better, and he's looking forward to having the full offseason to prepare for 2024-25.
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Starting/Off Bench
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Days Rest
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Vs Opp
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - By Result
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Advanced Stats
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2023
2022
2021
2020
Stat Review
How does LaMelo Ball compare to other players?
This section compares his stats with all players from the previous three seasons (minimum 200 minutes played)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
True Shooting %
An advanced statistic that measures a player's efficiency at shooting the ball that takes field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and three point percentage into account.
Effective Field Goal %
A statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points while field goals only count for two points.
3-Point Attempt Rate
Percentage of field goal attempts from three point range.
Free Throw Rate
Number of free throw attempts per field goal attempt.
Offensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available offensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Defensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Total Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Assist %
An estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted while they were on the floor.
Steal %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent possessions that end with a steal by the player while they were on the floor.
Block %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent two-point field goal attempts blocked by the player while they were on the floor.
Turnover %
An estimate of turnovers committed per 100 plays.
Usage %
An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while they were on the floor.
Fantasy Points Per Game
NBA Fantasy Points Per Game.
Fantasy Points Per Minute
NBA Fantasy Points Per Minute.
True Shooting %
56.1%
Effective Field Goal %
51.5%
3-Point Attempt Rate
46.6%
Free Throw Rate
24.6%
Offensive Rebound %
4.4%
Defensive Rebound %
13.7%
Total Rebound %
8.9%
Assist %
43.1%
Steal %
2.5%
Block %
0.5%
Turnover %
11.3%
Usage %
0.0%
Fantasy Points Per Game
44.3
Fantasy Points Per Minute
1.4
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Total
Per Game
Per 36
NBA Historical Fantasy Stats
How are these ratings calculated?
Our historical fantasy ratings are standard scores calculated using 8-Category settings with 12 teams and 13 players per team.
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NBA Per Game Historical Fantasy Stats
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NBA Per 36 Historical Fantasy Stats
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Historical ADP
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Hornets Depth Chart
Our full team depth charts are reserved for RotoWire subscribers.
Average Fantasy Points are determined when LaMelo Ball was active vs. non-active during the season. Click here to view average fantasy points for a different time period.
Minutes
FanDuel
DraftKings
Yahoo
FantasyDraft
Head2Head
Sorare
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring LaMelo Ball See More
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Alex Barutha participates in his second 9-cat H2H mock draft of the season, picking from the No. 9 spot and selecting Trae Young.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2021
2020
Ball is one of fantasy's brightest young point guards due to his all-around production. Last season, he averaged 23.3 points, 8.4 assists, 6.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 35.2 minutes. The problem was that the Hornet played only 36 games due to recurring ankle injuries. However, Ball is expected to be ready for training camp and logged 75 appearances in 2021-22. His efficiency is another potential concern, as she shot just 41.1 percent from the field in 2022-23. Despite this, his 37.6 percent shooting from three on 10.6 attempts and 83.6 free-throw percentage help his overall efficiency. Charlotte's roster could look pretty different in 2023-24, as PJ Washington is a restricted free agent, and Miles Bridges signed a one-year deal after missing all of last year with a suspension. Most importantly, the No. 2 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, Brandon Miller, should give Ball a high-quality shooter to set up from three and an athletic target in transition. If Ball can stay healthy and prove last year's injury was a fluke, he could average close to 25 points and 10 assists per game based on his current trajectory. Combined with his rebounding prowess, Ball could keep pace with or even out-produce fellow star point guard Trae Young at a potentially lower draft position.
Ball immediately impacted fantasy basketball during his rookie season, showing that he can be a significant contributor in multiple categories. He took his game to another level during his second season in the league, averaging 20.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game. While his 42.9 percent shooting from the field was underwhelming, he shot 87.2 percent from the free-throw line, which was an increase of more than 11 percentage points compared to his rookie season. He also put up 2.9 three-pointers per game while shooting 38.9 percent from deep. To top it off, he played in 75 games, making his contributions even more valuable. The Hornets have not made any significant moves around him during the offseason, with their most notable addition being the selection of center Mark Williams in the draft. They are also now dealing with uncertainty surrounding restricted free agent Miles Bridges, who was arrested for felony domestic violence. All of the stars looked to be aligning for another big season from Ball, but a preseason Grade 2 ankle sprain figures to cost him some time to open 2022-23, likely dinging his fantasy value. Still, there's plenty of risk/reward with targeting Ball in the second or third round.
The 2020-21 Rookie of the Year had one of the more impressive debut seasons in recent memory. It didn't take long for him to be inserted into the starting five. He drew his first start in February and never gave up the spot. As a starter, he averaged 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 1.7 steals, and he racked up plenty of highlight passes along the way. From Feb. 1 onward, Ball ranked as the 42nd-best fantasy player on a per-game basis -- an extremely impressive mark for a rookie. His role won't change heading into 2021-22, and there's a good chance he'll be able to improve his stats in Year 2. He was a good three-point shooter (2.1 makes per game at 37.9 percent as a starter) but has room to improve his field-goal percentage (43.8%) and free-throw percentage (75.9%). If Ball can do that, or add to his counting stats, he should easily be worth a fourth-round selection in most fantasy drafts. Aggressive fantasy managers have justification to take him in the third round or possibly even late-second if significant improvement is assumed.
Ball elected to skip college basketball and played professionally in Australia during the 2019-20 season, where he averaged 17.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.5 steals in 31.3 minutes. He excels as a passer and has deep range as a shooter, but he'll need to improve his shot selection in the NBA, as he was essentially given free rein in Australia last season. The 19-year-old should work with Devonte' Graham and Terry Rozier in Charlotte's backcourt, with Malik Monk also in the mix, though it's not exactly clear how the minutes will shake out. It seems likely the Hornets will try to get Ball close to 30 minutes per game, in which case, he should be a reliable source of assists and rebounds. His field-goal percentage could be a significant drag, however.
More Fantasy News
Shut down for season
GCharlotte Hornets
Ankle
March 28, 2024
The Hornets announced Thursday that Ball (ankle) will miss the remainder of the season.
ANALYSIS Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Still out
GCharlotte Hornets
Ankle
March 26, 2024
Ball (ankle) won't play in Wednesday's game versus the Cavaliers.
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Will remain sidelined Monday
GCharlotte Hornets
Ankle
March 24, 2024
Ball (ankle) has been ruled out for Monday's game against the Cavaliers.
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Still not ready for game action
GCharlotte Hornets
Ankle
March 22, 2024
Ball (ankle) has been ruled out for Saturday's game against the Hawks.
ANALYSIS Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Out again Tuesday
GCharlotte Hornets
Ankle
March 18, 2024
Ball (ankle) has been ruled out for Tuesday's game against the Magic.
ANALYSIS Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
ANALYSIS Injuries have prevented Ball from playing an entire NBA season, so there's a chance he might not be the lead guard the Hornets are looking for. However, the new regime wants to give him a chance to see if he can stay healthy. Ball's trade value is low because of his repeated ankle issues, so it's unlikely that other teams would give up multiple first-rounders in return for a player who's among the best point guards in the league when healthy.