Is it time for Hornets to move on from LaMelo Ball? ‘His approach can hold your franchise back’

The Hornets have looked the same in five years with LaMelo Ball as the face of the team and some around the NBA are wondering if Ball can actually take you places.

So far, the consensus is no.

Ball, 23, is a 6-foot-7 multitalented point guard, averaging 25.4 points, 7.2 assists and 5.1 rebounds. But he’s shooting just 40.5 percent from the field and 33.5 percent on 3-pointers. He’s also had trouble staying on the floor, yet again, appearing in 44 of the Hornets’ 67 games this year.

Once again, Charlotte (17-50) is headed back to the NBA Draft lottery — the same spot it’s been in since Ball was taken with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 draft.

Of course, the Hornets were bad before Ball. They’ve been bad since. You’d think they could at least back into the postseason once in a while just by dumb luck.

In the NBA, it’s incredibly difficult not to qualify for the playoffs. The Hornets almost never do.

Again, Ball isn’t entirely to blame by any stretch. The front office has historically struggled to put the right people around its stars. New general manager Jeff Peterson, in his defense, has had to start from scratch.

As for Ball, it goes back to what former NBA coach Jeff Van Gundy once asked about point guard Stephon Marbury. “Yes, he puts up great numbers,” Van Gundy said during an ESPN broadcast. “But are they winning numbers?”

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So is Ball the next Marbury? A guy who can put up great numbers, but a guy who can’t lead you to anything great?

“LaMelo Ball’s value is probably a little bit lower than 13-year-olds would think,” sports media personality Ryen Russillo recently said on FanDuel TV’s Run It Back. “He is incredibly talented. You know, his start-stop-start-again at his size … and he can see over the top of everybody because of his size.

“But Charlotte is kind of in this Atlanta Hawks thing, where you have this franchise guy, you have this local attraction. … But I look at LaMelo’s numbers, he’s at 41 percent (shooting) overall, and he takes the most shots in the NBA. He’s been through a bunch of coaches. You can see every coach he’s had having moments of frustration with his approach.”

Russillo went on to offer Ball some praise, but was quick to add, “his approach to the game holds your franchise back.”

For now, that is a fair statement on Ball and the floundering Hornets. And pretty soon — as in this offseason — Charlotte will need to decide if Ball can be the man who can actually lead it places.