The Charlotte Hornets are having one of their best seasons in the LaMelo Ball era. At 38-34, they have eclipsed their win total in each of the last three seasons. They are currently tied for the 8th-best record in the Eastern Conference and are just 2 games off the 6th seed and an outright playoff berth. With the Milwaukee Bucks 8.5 games down at No.11, they are almost guaranteed a play-in spot, their first since 2021-22.
Some are crediting rookie Kon Knueppel , whom the Hornets picked 4th overall in the 2025 NBA Draft, as the reason for their newfound success. Knueppel has shattered 3-point records and could steal Rookie of the Year honors from his college roommate Cooper Flagg . However, it cannot be denied that resident All-Star guard LaMelo Ball is having his most impactful season to date. "The Ringer" founder Bill Simmons agrees.
"LaMelo is a real winner this season. So his stats, if you look at them, he actually had seasons with better stats. This is a classic eye test; you have to watch it. I love the way he's playing. There's real thoughtfulness in how he's playing the point guard position now, how he's not as risky and kind of reckless as he was. He doesn't seem like he's in an AND-1 tournament anymore. There's a wherewithal with what he's doing now. I didn't think he had it in him. It's after six years. To me, the point guard position it's either "If you haven't shown me it, I'm not gonna believe in it," said Simmons.
Ball has been the Hornets' main guy since they drafted him 3rd overall in the 2020 NBA Draft. He beat out Anthony Edwards for the 2021 NBA Rookie of the Year award and proceeded to earn his first All-Star appearance a year later. However, despite putting up impressive numbers, the Hornets have never finished better than 9th place in the Eastern Conference and 3rd in the Southeast Division.
Things were looking the same earlier this season when they opened with a 15-27 record. But after ESPN's Kendrick Perkins reported in early January 2026 that Ball wasn't seeing eye-to-eye with head coach Charles Lee, the Hornets turned their season around and right before the All-Star break, they won 9 straight games to get back in contention.
LaMelo's current scoring average of 19.7 points per game is his lowest since his rookie season, as is his assists average of 7.1 per contest. He is taking four fewer shots per game this year compared to last season, and his usage rate, although still high, is 3.8 lower than last campaign's league-leading 35.9.
Meanwhile, Zach Lowe claims that LaMelo has always been this good. We saw this in his second year, where the Hornets went 43-39 and made the play-in. However, Ball always had this flair for the spectacular and his style was more streetball than NBA, so people forgot about how great a player he is and just disaproved his reckless and often selfish playing style.
"Everybody got so disgusted with the 5 or 6 crazy things he would do every game, that they unjustifiably dismissed all these statistical indicators that he was actually good and was actually driving Charlotte's offense at a high level when he was on the floor because his plays of insanity were so, like disgusting to basketball purists. I think they were just fed up with him as a player. He's always been good, but now he's found the right balance in his game that everyone is sort of agreeing, "Oh yeah, he's actually a helpful NBA player," Lowe explained.
Lowe may have a point. LaMelo's 2.8 turnovers per game this season are the lowest in his career. But aside from being more controlled as a player, he's also matured as a leader, and his teammates love his presence. It's crazy to think that he's in Year 6 because he is only 24. With Knueppel, Brandon Miller , and Miles Bridges , this Hornets team may be a couple more pieces away from being serious contenders.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Mar 25, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
