The Charlotte Hornets seem to be very happy with the situation they are in. While the last couple of years haven’t gone according to plan, they are confident in their ability to push forward with Charles Lee leading the way.
However, in a five-year NBA-Re Draft conducted by Bleacher Report, the Hornets chose to take a different route than the one they are currently on, passing on LaMelo Ball.
The re-draft put all of the players who were selected in the last five drafts into the same pool and had teams make picks based on their regular-season records over the past five seasons.
Charlotte earned the fifth pick in the draft because of how poorly they have performed as of late, and Ball was on the board—but the Hornets did not take him.
Instead, with the fifth pick in the re-draft, the Hornets selected Ja Morant.
Hornets pick Ja Morant over LaMelo Ball in 5-Year NBA Re-Draft
Morant has been one of the most impressive guards in the league since he was drafted, and in spite of his recent issues off the court, he would still be one of the top picks in a potential re-draft.
Having Morant leading the way in Charlotte would provide the same electricity as Ball but the same injury issues and off-the-court decisions (though Morant’s have been significantly worse).
And based on the re-draft’s selections, the Hornets weren’t even close to taking Ball in this parallel universe. They took Morant at five, and Ball didn’t get picked until No. 12, when he was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
A couple of other players who were picked right before Ball include Scottie Barnes, Alperen Sengun, and Jalen Williams.
It makes some sense for the Hornets to take Morant over Ball, but seeing those three guys taken over the current Charlotte star feels a little bit weird, considering Ball was an All-Star years ago.
When he’s on the court, Ball is one of the most electrifying guards in the NBA, but the problem is, he just can’t stay on the court. So maybe teams would rather take the consistency of Barnes, Sengun, and Williams.
Regardless, seeing the Hornets pass on Ball in a re-draft is very intriguing, especially considering how late Ball went.