Lou Williams On Hornets: ‘Everyone Has To Share Responsibility For How Bad This Is’

The Charlotte Hornets weren’t really supposed to be any good — but they probably weren’t supposed to be this bad. It’s as if the rest of the NBA has returned from the All-Star break, but the Hornets stayed in the Bahamas.

The Hornets (14-48) have lost four straight, including six of seven. Interestingly, their one win in those games was over the Los Angeles Lakers, and in LA, no less.

But the past four? Yeah, just awful. They lost at Portland by 53, then at Sacramento by 42, by 36. But hey, at least they’re showing improvement, right?

Wrong. And this is truly no laughing matter for the organization. Just ask former NBA guard Lou Williams. And he sort of placed at least some of the blame on star point guard LaMelo Ball.

So far, Ball’s game has been all sizzle. Fun to watch, but it’s starting to look more and more like having him as the top option will lead you to Nowheresville.

“We’re not giving them excuses,” Williams said on FanDuel TV’s Run It Back. “This is led by the same person we were rooting for two to three weeks ago to be an All-Star. If you lose a game by 53, then you follow that up with a 42, and then you follow that one up with a 36, where’s the pride? Everyone has to share responsibility for how bad this is.”

Ball is a fine player, no doubt. He’s putting up remarkable numbers — averaging 26.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 7.1. But people are starting to wonder if he’s a winner, or just a stats man.

Granted, this can’t all be pinned on one guy. Coach Charles Lee and the front office need to get some things figured out this offseason. The roster is clunky and the Hornets have been irrelevant for too long.

But Ball is the face of the team and he’s going to get the lion’s share of the blame. That’s just how life in the NBA works.

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The Hornets have lost their last three games by a combined 131 points, an NBA record!

@TeamLou23 says the group needs to show more pride, and it stars with their superstar LaMelo Ball.@MichelleDBeadle | @ChandlerParsons | @TeamLou23 pic.twitter.com/yL0ZTm7HYY

— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) February 27, 2025