Does LaMelo Want to Stay in Charlotte?

A big summer is on deck for the Hornets.

33-39, 43-39, and 27-55. That is how the Charlotte Hornets have finished the regular season in the three years of the LaMelo Ball era. 

The team wasn't quite ready to compete during his rookie year and this year the injury bug hung over them like a dark cloud. As soon as one guy came back, another went on the shelf for multiple games, sometimes weeks. LaMelo Ball couldn't escape the injuries either, suffering three ankle injuries, limiting him to just 36 games on the season.

It's possible a season full of bad luck turns into an enormous amount of good luck when the draft lottery takes place on May 16th. And boy, do the Hornets need it. Charlotte can't afford to lose a player like LaMelo. Pairing him up with a Victor Wembanyama or Scoot Henderson would give the organization something to build around and a sense of direction. But if the Hornets don't get any luck from the ping-pong balls and don't make any serious moves this offseason, it could result in another challenging season. For a player as talented as Ball, who is entering the final year of his rookie deal, you have to put a plan in place that shows the organization has a clear path to becoming a contender if you want him to stick around. Head coach Steve Clifford knows it, too.

"It’s critical. As upbeat and everything as he is – and he is fun to be around, he’s been a joy to coach so far – in that locker room, losing is harder for him than on almost anyone," Clifford said. "We have a couple guys who losing bothers them. There are three guys in there that do this where I’ll get the 12:30 text, ‘Hey, my bad. I’m sorry, I should’ve done better.’ He’s done that a couple times. He badly wants to win. I think he loves it here. I think he loves the city, loves the organization, really enjoys his teammates. When you’re at his level, there are certain expectations. You’re going to be compared to the other point guards his age that have had not incredible playoff success, but have had some. It’s important to his career.”

When asked if winning next year is critical to keep him around, Ball replied, 

"Yeah. I mean, for sure. Definitely. I mean, the main thing is winning. Life is better when you win. I play it by the day. Like I've said, I love it out here. I can't really tell the future, so we'll just see how it goes and go from there."

This was the first time LaMelo has said anything other than, "I love it in Charlotte and want to be here," which is important to point out. At the same time, he uses phrases like "day-by-day" regularly when asking questions and fans shouldn't automatically interpret it in the literal sense.

When he said nobody can tell the future, he's right and let's be honest everyone knows he won't be here his whole career. How many NBA players do that these days? That doesn't mean he's leaving next year. The team has almost full control and the only way he leaves is if he takes the qualifying offer which he is unlikely to do due to his injury issue.

Whenever there is a young, star player in a small market that is losing the media will speculate on his future. It happened to Luka in Dallas and Dame in Portland. It's just part of the news cycle and it will pass if they pop back up next year into the play-in race.

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