Borrego on LaMelo Ball: 'What He is Doing at the Age of 20 is Special'

The Hornets star is becoming an elite player at an extremely young stage of his career.

Many numbers stick out when you glance at the final box score from the Hornets 158-126 win over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night, but the one stat that caught my eye is LaMelo Ball being a +45 on the night. Kelly Oubre Jr, was the closest to him at +27. It doesn't matter if he's scoring at will, being a menace defensively, battling on the boards, or setting up baskets, when Ball is on the floor good things typically happen and Wednesday night was a perfect example of that. 

"He impacts games so many ways," Hornets head coach James Borrego said. "He's on the board, he can move the ball, he can share it, he can score in multiple ways. He's got his imprint all over these games. Even if he's not scoring at a high level, he can rebound the ball. He's obviously a playmaker for us. He's a special kid, a special player. To be doing what he's doing at the age of 20 is special. You don't see this very often."

Ball also finished the night with his fourth triple-double of the season which ties him with Anthony Mason (1996-97) for most triple-doubles in a single season. He went for 29 points, 13 assists, and 10 rebounds. 

"I was really proud of his effort tonight. He really got us going in that third quarter," said Borrego. "His defense, his energy, his spirit. He was due for a game like this. When he is playing with great energy and is focused defensively and he's got his hands on balls getting deflections and just rebounding the ball...one of his best offenses is when he's getting stops on his own and when he's pushing it. Melo's spirit always ignites us. Whether it's in practice, a film session, on the floor, to be doing what he's doing at 20, that's tough to impact a team the way he is doing it right now."

The Hornets will return to Spectrum Center on Friday night to host LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST and will be nationally televised on ESPN. 

You can follow us for future coverage by liking us on Facebook & following us Twitter:

Facebook - All Hornets

Twitter - @SI_Hornets and Schuyler Callihan at @Callihan_.