LaMelo Ball leads Charlotte Hornets to victory with impressive comeback

LaMelo Ball was in top form at the Charlotte Hornets’ NFL season opener on Wednesday night. After a long break due to persistent ankle injuries, the young star made an impressive return. In his first regular season game since January 26, Ball scored 34 points, dished out 11 assists and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the Hornets to a 110-105 victory over the Houston Rockets.

Ball hit four three-pointers and made all ten of his free throws to secure the win for Charlotte. The Hornets have high hopes for Ball to end their eight-year playoff drought. He has continued to develop since being selected with the third overall pick in the 2020 draft and being named Rookie of the Year in his rookie season. However, ankle injuries meant he was only able to play in 58 games over the last two seasons.

Now Ball seems to have overcome these problems, which new coach Charles Lee also appreciates. When asked what a healthy ball means to his team, Lee replied with a smile: “It’s like the engine for us. If we have a healthy LaMelo Ball, we will do a lot of good things because I know he will continue to grow and help everyone around him get better.”

The 23-year-old beamed after the game and reflected on his return to the floor: “It’s a blessing to just do what we love. We grew up playing basketball, so it’s an incredible feeling to still be able to do it as a career.”

Lee praised Ball’s commitment and desire to win since their first phone call after he was hired: “He wants to earn the trust of his teammates and coaches, be a winner and influence victory. I told him what was going to help us impact the win and I think you saw him execute on that tonight with some of his defensive efforts and offensive play.”

The Hornets trailed by 18 points at one point on Wednesday before rallying late and taking the win. Ball was encouraged by the way the team came together after a difficult start: “In the first game you just want to make a statement. So we had to get that first win.”