Mar 12, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) works past Atlanta Hawks guard Terance Mann (14) during the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mady Mertens-Imagn Images Mady Mertens-Imagn Images

The Hornets are well-equipped to deal with LaMelo Ball injuries now, analyst claims

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Aug 14, 2025 11:22 AM ET

There are a few things that you can expect the Charlotte Hornets to announce every year about LaMelo Ball. "LaMelo Ball is questionable with ankle soreness," is one of them. "LaMelo Ball will be reevaluated in two weeks," is another one. Basically, you can expect some injury updates about the star guard all the time.

Everyone wants Ball to stay healthy and play upwards of 70 games. Is that going to happen all the time? At this point, it's hard to say it will. Ball has played in 56.3% of the games he could've appeared in through his five NBA seasons. The odds are pretty high that he'll get hurt in 2025-26, or at least that the Hornets will rest him every now and again to prevent them.

In the past, that has effectively meant the Hornets had to play with one hand (or maybe both) tied behind their back. However, for the first time in maybe forever, it seems like the Hornets have the capacity to withstand his absence. One NBA insider agrees.

NBA analyst praises Hornets for getting enough talent to survive LaMelo Ball injuries

Bleacher Report analyst Zach Buckley gave the Hornets a B- grade for their efforts, which is a better offseason than the team usually has. He admitted that "Buzz City" was not all that buzzy this offseason, but they were "smart" and should "feel better about both their current outlook and their future."

Buckley did admit, "They could've chased more upside with the No. 4 pick, but Kon Knueppel plays the kind of connective style that could help everyone around him." He also liked the Mark Williams deal since the big man was not in the future plans, and it netted Liam McNeeley and a future first-round pick.

But the biggest part is simply that it's a more well-rounded roster that has the talent to withstand the inevitable injuries that will happen to its biggest players.

"While Charlotte surely hopes to see fewer LaMelo Ball-less minutes going forward, the club is at least better prepared to navigate them after acquiring Collin Sexton for a great price, signing Spencer Dinwiddie, and re-signing Tre Mann," Buckley concluded.

If and when Ball goes down, the Hornets have ample guards to take up the slack for once.