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Has LaMelo Ball played his last game as a member of the Charlotte Hornets?

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Matt Alquiza | Last updated Mar 28, 2025 7:13 PM ET

LaMelo Ball has been the alpha and the omega of the Charlotte Hornets since the franchise swung for the fences and drafted him in 2020. Ball epitomizes the modern NBA, boasting an audacious skill set that includes limitless range and a handle made for Tik Tok clips while owning one of the largest social media followings in the sport.

Although Ball is without a doubt one of the league's brightest young stars, his supernova game hasn't translated to team success in Charlotte.

Unfortunately, ankle and wrist injuries have put the clamps on Ball's ability to carry the Hornets to even a modicum of success. Two NBA Play-In Tournament blowouts are all that LaMelo has to show on his ledger; a measly output for a ball-dominant, annual All-Star hopeful.

On Friday, March 27th, the Hornets announced, once again, that LaMelo Ball would miss the remainder of the season due to impending surgeries. This time, to both his wrist, and his ankle, not one or the other.

OFFICIAL: LaMelo Ball will undergo arthroscopic surgery to address a right ankle impingement. He will also have a minor procedure on his right wrist. Ball is listed as out for tonight’s game vs TOR and will miss the remainder of the season.
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) March 28, 2025

We didn't know it at the time, but LaMelo's last game in the 2024-25 season was on Wednesday night against the Orlando Magic when he poured in an efficient 25 points before fouling out of the contest.

While that was assuredly Ball's last game in a Hornets uniform this spring, could it be the last one in his career?

Will the Charlotte Hornets trade LaMelo Ball this summer?

After Jeff Peterson sent Mark Williams to the Lakers ahead of the 2025 NBA trade deadline, anything is possible.

There is both a case for, and against, trading Ball this summer.

The case against it is simple: LaMelo Ball is a cost-controlled, true one-of-one talent with the ball in his hands that brings both on-court (Charlotte's net rating is +8.7 points per 100 possessions better when Ball is on the floor per Cleaning the Glass), and off (Ball's social media presence has brought immeasurable notoriety to Charlotte). You don't trade those players at the peak of their powers.

However, the case for trading Ball is just as easy to make. He's coming off the most successful scoring season of his career, four of his five NBA campaigns have ended prematurely due to injuries, he, or his dad may want him out of Charlotte, and the entire franchise around him (ownership, front office, coaching staff, etc.) have no emotional investment to Ball the asset. They inherited him from a previous regime and, as they've already shown, no piece of the "core four" is un-tradable if the right offer comes.

Sitting here on Friday, March 28th, I believe that LaMelo Ball will suit up elsewhere come October. The Hornets are nearing a decade since their last playoff appearance, and in five of the nine seasons they've missed them, Ball has been on the roster. A shakeup is necessary, although how big of one may depend on how the lottery balls fall in May.

If Charlotte lands the first overall pick and can add Cooper Flagg to their current core? Keeping Ball has some merit. A starting five of Ball, Flagg, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, and Mark Williams has some serious juice.

If Charlotte lands elsewhere in the lottery? A Ball trade that brings in some young talent and assets, Brandon Miller, and a bevy of extra first round picks in the 2026 and 2027 drafts make a solid base to build with.

Again, a convincing case can be made for or against trading LaMelo: the ball is in Jeff Peterson's court now. As it has been reported by multiple outlets, opposing executives have already been monitoring Ball's status ahead of a summer where the majority of major roster shakeups will be coming in trades, not free agency, due to the collective lack of cap space around the NBA.