(Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
The Charlotte Hornets have seemingly been on the ground level of a rebuilding project for a long time, but they do have at least a faint hope they can take a step forward in the 2024-25 NBA season.
While it is very unlikely they can reach the playoffs, or even make the play-in tournament, they do have a couple of promising young players, including guard LaMelo Ball.
Ball has been derailed by injuries in his brief pro career, but teammate Grant Williams told NBA Buzz he believes the 22-year-old will be “amazing” this coming season.
“Ankle braces (Ball) gonna be amazing. All-NBA,” Williams said, via Courtside Buzz.
Grant Williams has high expectations for his Hornets teammate LaMelo Ball in 2024-25:
“Ankle braces gonna be amazing. All-NBA.”
LaMelo, who has dealt with multiple ankle injuries in his NBA career, has committed to wear ankle braces in 2024-25 to curb any more potential… pic.twitter.com/9YLmSt0Ixr
— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) August 16, 2024
Ball was named Rookie of the Year for the 2020-21 season despite being limited to 51 games, and since then, his per-game averages have steadily improved.
However, he has appeared in just 184 of a possible 318 regular season games in his NBA career so far.
Last season, he put up 23.9 points, 8.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game, which are certainly All-Star-caliber numbers, but he played just 22 games.
Williams started last season with the Dallas Mavericks and was traded to Charlotte at midseason along with Seth Curry for P.J. Washington and two second-round draft picks.
His 3-and-D skills should help the Hornets establish a bit more stability as they look to challenge for a play-in tournament spot in the not-too-distant future.
Charlotte is also hoping for some more growth from Brandon Miller, who had a fine rookie season and seems to have some intriguing potential.
He averaged 17.3 points per game and shot 37.3 percent from 3-point range during the 2023-24 campaign, finishing third in the Rookie of the Year balloting.
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