Starting LaMelo Ball is inevitable. It’s time, Charlotte Hornets, to make that change
The Charlotte Hornets need to start rookie LaMelo Ball.
Not next month or next week. Now. As in Saturday’s road game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Between Devonte Graham’s awful start and Ball’s rapid development, it’s hard to imagine another appropriate course following Friday’s 108-93 home loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.
This wouldn’t be a knee-jerk reaction. It would reflect how things are.
Through five games, Graham is averaging 9.8 points on 27.4% shooting. He’s making 3s — what made him special last season — just 30.6% of the time this season. He hit bottom Friday against the Grizzlies, making one of his 10 shots.
Meanwhile, Ball — the third overall pick — was one of the few Hornets to play well Friday, finishing with 15 points and six assists, and shooting 6 of 14. That continues a trend where the rookie mistakes that made you groan in the preseason are dissipating and the savvy reads keep rising.
I asked coach James Borrego after Friday’s loss if he was contemplating starting Ball.
“That’s one area I’ve got to continue to look at and look at it hard,” Borrego replied. “That’s not the only one, but I’ll continue to look at that area.”
Devonte Graham’s struggles
Graham was a revelation last season, playing so well off the bench the first 10 games that Borrego made him a starter. It was a situation where Dwayne Bacon’s struggles and Graham’s ascension aligned in time.
Not unlike what’s happening now with Graham and Ball.
Graham is playing off the ball more this season. That’s an adjustment, but he’s not using it as an excuse.
“It’s just me, and I’m not making shots,” Graham said, adding it’s his job to adapt to new circumstance.
“I’ve been doing that my entire career, adjusting to whoever we bring in, from high school to college. So it has nothing to do with who’s around me or the plays we call or whatever the case may be.”
His scoring average is roughly half of last season’s 18.2 points per game. It’s not just that his jump shot isn’t falling, it’s that teams are guarding him without giving up shooting fouls. Graham has taken six free throws in five games, or an attempt for every 27 minutes played.
“I don’t know, to be honest,” Borrego said, when asked about Graham’s struggles. “I don’t want to speculate. We’ve just got to let this play out a little bit. I believe his shot will come around.”
Probably so. Graham was good enough long enough last season not to think that was a fluke. But how long can Borrego wait, when the rookie alternative is showing such promise?
Contrast in skills
Graham and Ball are both point guards, but their skill sets and body types are very different: Graham is smallish at 6-foot-1, but his 37% shooting from 3-point range last season made him hard to guard. Ball is 6-foot-7 and an inventive, daring passer. His shooting form looks flawed, but right now he’s making 46% from 3.
Terry Rozier, the other starting guard, has the versatility and experience to blend with either Graham or Ball. Rozier already demonstrated, when Borrego replaced Bacon with Graham, that he adapts to change.
Graham won’t shoot this badly forever. He’s too smart, too good a problem-solver, not to make correction that will return him to efficiency.
But in the meantime, Ball keeps showing he’s ready for an expanded role: more minutes, more usage, more play with the starters.
This shift is inevitable. Go ahead and make it now.
This story was originally published January 2, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
