Troubling Stat Reveals Unfortunate Hole in LaMelo Ball's Game

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball has a pretty well-rounded game on offense. He can score from different areas on the floor, although he's not so much a midrange shooter. Still, he does a lot on that end of the floor, but there's still one major flaw.

In tonight's loss, LaMelo Ball attempted 0 FTA for the 16th time this season.

That's more than SGA, Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker, Steph Curry, Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey, Donovan Mitchell, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Cade Cunningham, Jamal Murray, and Jaylen Brown...combined. pic.twitter.com/Ym29KOGrsg
— Hot Hand Theory (@HotHandTheory) March 9, 2026

Last time out, Ball recorded zero free throws. That seems impossible for the lead guard of one of the most prolific offenses in the NBA, but it's not. In fact, it's the 16th time it has happened this season.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker, Steph Curry, Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey, Donovan Mitchell, Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Cade Cunningham, Jamal Murray, and Jaylen Brown have had fewer than 16 games without free throws combined.

Ball ranks 96th in the NBA in free throws attempted per game. That's seventh on the Hornets, also behind both Coby White and Collin Sexton during their respective tenures. For what it's worth, Ball ranks 35th in drives per game across the NBA.

There are two things to glean from this. First, Ball doesn't seem to draw contact as much as his peers. He also sometimes struggles to finish through contact, which is why he attempts 9.7 threes versus 7.3 twos a game.

The second thing is that Ball doesn't get a superstar whistle. Keyonte George drives way less but gets more free throws. The same is true of Jerami Grant.

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) drives past Miami Heat guard Dru Smith | Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images

Norman Powell, Brandon Williams, Peyton Watson, Anthony Black, Isaiah Collier, Dennis Schroder, Quentin Grimes, Ausar Thompson, and Jeremiah Fears all get much friendlier whistles than Ball.

With all due respect to those players, they're not exactly stars in this league. Because Ball drives fairly frequently, he should get more free throws, but he doesn't. This is partly because he doesn't draw as much contact as he could, and because referees tend to swallow the whistle when it comes to him.

Is there anything he can do to change that? Not really. Unless Ball gets a lot stronger, which may mess up some of his game, then he's not likely to become a better finisher through contact, so he shouldn't be driving and looking for contact.

Because of his frame and play style, it's honestly not the worst idea to avoid contact down low, especially with how the referees seem to officiate him. Until he starts getting a better whistle, he needs to keep doing what he's doing.

And that unfortunately means he will have to rely on twos and threes for his points, which is partly why he's so inefficient. He doesn't get free throws to help pad his scoring totals, which would help since he's shooting 90.1% from the stripe.

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