There were concerns LaMelo Ball would carry a too-cool-for-school attitude into the NBA. After all, his defense and shot selection in Australia were beyond lazy.
But the Hornets rookie has endeared with his passion.
Especially with this hustle play against the Kings last night.
In the final second of the first half, Ball tried to save an errant inbound pass from going out of bounds. He fell into a chair on Sacramento’s bench, tried to brace himself on a cooler, knocked that over and continued to stumble over everything. There’s a fantastic moment where Ball clearly realizes he can’t regain his balance but still has plenty of time left falling/making a mess.
Ball popped up with a big smile.
He had even more reason to grin later with the way Charlotte won.