Hornets coach Charles Lee reveals reasoning behind sitting LaMelo Ball

The Hornets wanted to be cautious with LaMelo Ball.

Mar 10, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) in action against the Miami Heat during the first half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Rhona Wise-Imagn Images | Rhona Wise-Imagn Images

On Monday evening, LaMelo Ball popped up on the Charlotte Hornets' injury report with wrist soreness, something that has happened before. He was probable. On Tuesday, he was downgraded to questionable before being ruled out ahead of game time. This is a path he's taken many times this year.

Ball had wrist surgery in 2021 and has at times been bothered by it, and the Hornets decided it was worth sitting him down in what turned out to be a dismal showing in a blowout home loss to the Atlanta Hawks (who completed a four-game sweep of Charlotte). Charles Lee, first-year Hornets coach, revealed why.

🎙️ Charles Lee on the decision to sit LaMelo Ball (wrist) tonight:

"It's just longevity coming off that road trip. I've seen a lot of really good things from Melo, and after evaluation, between nicks and bruises, it just didn’t seem like it was in his best interest tonight." pic.twitter.com/GpCBEXa8ox

— r/CharlotteHornets on Reddit (@HornetsReddit) March 19, 2025

Lee said, "It's just longevity coming off that road trip. Obviously, seen a lot of really good things from Melo, and after evaluation, between nicks and bruises, it just didn’t seem like it was in the best interest of him tonight."

This is, by all accounts, a lost season for the Hornets. They slipped to 17-51 on the season, the third-worst record in the league. They're 2.5 games out of the worst record, which is now owned by the Utah Jazz, and they essentially have nothing to play for. So if Ball, who's had plenty of injury issues throughout his NBA career and multiple this season, is banged up, it's not worth playing him in the Hornets' eyes.

They also sat Miles Bridges, who's had a very high usage rate and workload over the last few games as he's exploded in the box score. It resulted in a 32-point loss in which Moussa Diabate also exited with an injury, only adding to the laundry list of ailments that have plagued the 2024-25 Charlotte Hornets.

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