The Charlotte Hornets found a linchpin after drafting Kon Knueppel this summer. What that means for LaMelo Ball's future with the franchise is still unclear. However, if the organization decides to continue building around both of them (plus Brandon Miller), the star point guard could learn a thing or two about being more effective on offense even without being a high-usage player.
To be fair to Ball, he has dialed back his usage this season after being forced to carry a monstrous offensive load while playing with a weaker roster and key teammates out with injuries. However, the fact remains that in the eight games he has appeared in this year, he is shooting at a 40.5 percent clip. The former No. 3 pick is hoisting around three fewer field-goal attempts per game, but he has still needed plenty of shots (18.5 tries per contest) to average 22.0 points per game.
Still, despite Ball scoring inefficiently, the Hornets are a much better offensive unit when he is on the floor. That's because the ball movement is more pristine with him facilitating the offense.
If he wants Charlotte's offense to be even more formidable, though, Ball should either focus on looking for more high-quality shots or playing off the ball more often. He has made just 31.0 percent of his pull-up jumpers, but in catch-and-shoot situations, his conversion rate is 37.5 percent. Based on those numbers, he may have to temper his shot-hunting tendency in favor of creating better scoring opportunities for himself and his crew.
Kon Knueppel has been playing beyond his years
The good news is that Melo does not have to look far for inspiration on how to be a low-usage, high-impact player.
Knueppel has arguably been the Hornets' best player this season, and yet, six of his teammates have registered a higher usage rate. Brandon Miller, who was healthy in only the first five quarters of the regular season, is first with 33.3 percent, with Ball, Miles Bridges, Collin Sexton, Tre Mann, and KJ Simpson also ahead of the rookie.
Knueppel has already proven how one can turn in a strong outing even without taking a crazy number of shots. He has picked his spots well, showing remarkable ability to move without the ball, set screens (his two-man action with Ball has already caught the attention of a lot of folks), and make the extra pass. He has typically not forced the issue when he has the rock, preferring to take as many high-quality shots as possible.
Through 14 regular-season appearances in his debut year, Kon has scored 17.6 points per contest on 46.5 percent shooting. Funnily enough, he has sunk nearly half of his attempts when the closest defender is within six feet of his airspace. On the other hand, he has a field-goal percentage of 41.8 percent when he is wide open. So, it's likely that his efficiency will only rise once he is able to take advantage of the supposedly easier jumpers.
Hopefully, Ball can take several pages out of Knueppel's book to help unlock the Hornets' sky-scraping offensive potential, something we were able to witness during the early days of the regular season.