Hornets’ LaMelo Ball Makes NBA History vs. Spurs
NBA Analytics NetworkOn Wednesday night, Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball scored 28 points, got 10 assists an…
On Wednesday night, Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball scored 28 points, got 10 assists and grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds as the Hornets beat San Antonio 120–110 to send the Spurs to the NBA All-Star break on a 14-loss streak of the game.
During his NBA career, Ball became the second youngest player to reach 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists.
“He is certainly a very talented player,” said Hornets forward Gordon Hayward. “Great visibility for sure and he is all over the field. (With rebounding) he has a special ability to be in the right place at the right time. … He is of course already a great player and I think he will continue to grow into an even better one.”
Upon hearing about the feat, Ball immediately acknowledged that LeBron James was the only player younger than him to have accomplished the same thing.
“I don’t like coming up with that stuff,” said Ball, who was on the same list as James. “I just go out there and try to get win after win.”
Ball recorded his third triple-double of the season and ninth of his career. Charlotte won his second game in a row thanks to PJ Washington’s 22 points and 10 rebounds and rookie Mark Williams’ 12 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots.
NBA SCORES & NEWS: LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets & San Antonio Spurs Updates
Nick Richards, the backup center, recorded five of the Hornets’ 12 blocks. With Williams and Richards, the Hornets appear to have two young, capable shot blockers.
“What they both do is make exceptional plays because of their size and athleticism,” said Hornets coach Steve Clifford. “What they also have to do now is to make fewer mistakes and not to give away possessions. If they do, we’ll be in good shape and so will they.”
After losing their last three road games after defeating Houston on December 19, the Spurs were led by Malaki Branham’s 23 points and Keldon Johnson’s 21 points. Doug McDermott added 17 points on five three-pointers.
A 60–57 halftime lead was in the hands of the Hornets, led by Ball, who nearly had a triple-double with 10 points, nine rebounds and eight assists while playing extra time with Terry Rozier out due to knee pain.
NBA SCORES & NEWS: LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets & San Antonio Spurs Updates
With back-to-back 3-pointers and a short jumper, McDermott led the Spurs back to cut Charlotte’s lead to one in the fourth quarter. With five minutes remaining, newly acquired guard Svi Mykhailiuk helped cut the Hornets’ lead to six by stopping a shot from the corner. The win was sealed with 59 seconds left by Washington’s offensive rebound and thunderous dunk after Ball made his fifth 3-pointer of the game.
“At some point you have to be proud of what you’re doing in terms of performance and competition,” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. “That starts with the defense and we were really bad. That’s on me if I think we start to improve, and we go back two steps, so I have to think about that, figure out how to better motivate them. ”
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