NBA Opinion: After Winning ROY Hornets' LaMelo Ball Could Be An All-Star This Season

The NBA season kicked off on Tuesday evening with two games, and more NBA teams will play their first games on Wednesday evening.

Two of those teams that are getting their season underway on Wednesday are the Charlotte Hornets and Indiana Pacers.

The Hornets are led by 2021 Rookie of The Year LaMelo Ball.

I believe that Ball has a chance to be an All-Star in the Eastern Conference this season.

How could the 20-year-old be an All-Star?

For starters, if he can put up the exact numbers he did last season, and the Hornets are a good basketball team, that would probably be enough.

Reigning Rookie of the Year LaMelo Ball averaged 15.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 6.1 apg and 1.6 spg to become the third player in franchise history to win ROY. Ball ranked 17th in apg and 9th in spg in the NBA. #AllFly
— Charlotte Hornets PR (@HornetsPR) October 20, 2021

Last season, he averaged 15.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

He scores, rebounds, passes and defends.

What a pass from LaMelo. 🔥🔥

pic.twitter.com/EjN1MkIBNc
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 12, 2021

The one thing he will need to truly get better at is his three-point shooting (35.2%) last season, but that is something that can be improved with time, and 35% is not a bad start.

The 20-year-old had the Hornets looking like they'd be a postseason team for a big chunk of last season, but he went down with a wrist injury that derailed a large part of the second half of the season.

LaMelo Ball will be out indefinitely with a fractured right wrist, the Hornets announced. pic.twitter.com/opvAfxJcjI
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 22, 2021

While he still won Rookie of The Year, he only played in 51/72 regular season games.

Therefore, those 21 games that the Hornets did not have their man running the show probably cost them the playoffs.

Gotta feeling LaMelo gonna surprise a lot of people this year 🤫@MELOD1P (via lrg_visuals/IG) pic.twitter.com/nD1iIPJh5j
— Overtime (@overtime) October 11, 2021

At one point they were even the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.

If Ball can stay healthy for 70+ games this season, and improve upon his numbers only even a little, while the Hornets are in playoff contention, Ball would have a legitimate case to make the 2022 All-Star game as a reserve.