Since Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports! reported last week that LaMelo Ball had grown "increasingly frustrated" with the Charlotte Hornets and was open to a trade, there has been a lot of chatter about what a trade could look like. NBA insider Marc Stein said on the "ALL NBA Podcast" on Sunday that most of the chatter is "emanating from rival front offices at this point," and that as of right now, the Hornets don't want to trade LaMelo.
Stein added that Charlotte "insists" that it isn't gauging Ball's trade value, and that it would be difficult for the team to trade him because of his injury history. He compared it to the Grizzlies' situation with Anthony Davis: if the Mavericks wanted to trade him, they wouldn't get what they want, since he's played only five games this season. Ball has played 10. In the past three seasons, he's averaged 35 games.
Ball has missed seven of Charlotte's 17 games this season due to right ankle impingement. He's played in back-to-back games for the Hornets once, most recently sitting during Sunday's loss to the Hawks after playing against the Clippers on Saturday.
Between his injury history and his contract (he will make up to $46.4 million in 2028-29, the final season of his deal), not only could it be tough for Charlotte to find a suitor, but it won't be at the price tag that the Hornets prefer.
A LaMelo Ball trade wouldn't be easy for the Hornets
As Stein noted, the trade season begins on Dec. 15, when players who signed deals over the summer will be eligible to be traded. With the trade deadline not until Feb. 5, it's still too soon to predict the moves teams will make, but rumors will start to ramp up in the coming weeks. Charlotte is reportedly against a LaMelo trade now, but that could change.
The Hornets could shop the 24-year-old before the deadline to gauge what they could get for him, but depending on how they view him, they could be disappointed. Charlotte will want to get as much as possible in a return package, but it won't be all that much. Ball is a talented playmaker, averaging 9.3 assists per game this season, but his style of play, contract, and injury history are enough to keep teams away.
If Ball can stay on the floor for the majority of the next few weeks, it would help the Hornets, as it'd allow them to try to maximize what they could get in return in a trade. The season is only a month old, but with Charlotte sitting five games back from the No. 10 spot in the East, any hope that there was of the Hornets doing something is already all but extinguished.
We could be only a few weeks away from the Hornets trading the face of their franchise, officially handing the keys over to their young talent. Or LaMelo could stay right where he is, not because Charlotte is set on keeping him around, but because of hesitation to trade for him.