Kyle Kuzma tilted his arm back like a quarterback about to hit a path. His target was LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers star made a move to the Charlotte Hornets ’LaMelo Ball.
There aren’t many proponents of any sport that will stop James when he gets a step ahead with a steam head down. But Ball shot him, extending his arm behind him to try to stop James, while pivoting and climbing on defense.
Ball had created the opportunity for a quick break trying to shoot the ball over James, who got a hand and gave it to Kuzma. So it was Ball’s responsibility to stop it, even if it meant tying his fifth foul and ending the Hornets’ impressive comeback in the second half Thursday night with a 116-105 loss to the Lakers at the Staples Center. .
But the play talked a lot about Ball’s mindset in his first NBA game against James. It was, as I mentioned earlier this week, one more game for the talented rookie. Just again playing against one of the greats in the league. Just another measuring stick you will learn.
“He felt good,” Ball said of his first game against James, with whom his stats in the early 20s of his career compare favorably. “But not too well, because we didn’t get the win.”
Thursday was Ball’s twentieth career start and, according to ESPN Stats & Information research, Ball has averaged more points (19.8 to 16.5) than James during the first 20 starts of his career, shooting better from the field (46.8% to 39.9%) and beyond the three-point line (from 43.2% to 31.5%).
Of course, it’s not a perfect comparison. James started the first 20 games of the 2003 season in Cleveland, while Ball did not move to the Hornets ’starting lineup until his twentieth game of the season: Thursday was his 40th career game. James also had the weight of being the undisputed No. 1 general pick in his draft class, and being taken by his hometown team.
Ball entered the league as a mystery as he skipped his senior year of high school and college to play overseas for two seasons before the Hornets ranked him No. 3 last fall.
But the youngest of the three Ball brothers has lived the same life in the same way as James when he had joined the league. And he had endured more hesitations than ever since James, as he stumbled when he was a teenager in the Lithuanian league and irritated the family’s Facebook Live reality show.
Those struggles and experiences, which Ball’s father, LaVar Ball, predicted, were the ones that gave LaMelo the potential to be the best of his three children.
“People ask me,‘ Who’s the best? “LaVar said in an interview with ESPN magazine in 2017.” Come on, Lonzo is the best right now. He is the oldest. But Melo will be the best, because he has the most experience … he has more experience and more s —. “
The Bigger Ball has been remarkably quiet as his youngest son has entered the NBA scene this year. Part of that depends on geography: LaVar still lives at home in Chino Hills, an hour east of Los Angeles, while Lonzo is in New Orleans and LaMelo in Charlotte. Another part is the conscious decision to withdraw from the media spotlight, where he often overshadowed Lonzo when he started with the Lakers.
But LaVar has not been completely silenced. He did a radio interview with ESPN Los Angeles before Thursday’s game in which he doubled down on LaMelo’s comment that the game against James wasn’t extra special.
“Don’t look at it like,‘ Oh, I’m playing this guy! “LaVar Ball said on the show” Mason & Ireland. “” No, it’s competition … How will you feel about another man and your father is LaVar Ball? “
Presumption provoked laughter from the hosts. In fact, several of his statements went viral, as they usually do. But as it has been all season, LaMelo’s talent has spoken for itself.
“It’s great to be his age,” James said of Ball after his confrontation. “His speed, his speed, his ability to make shots and baskets in the paint … and it will only get better. Every game is a learning experience for him. He will get better as the season progresses and his career happens.
“He and ‘Zo are two unique players in our league and they prove it every night.”
James outscored Ball and the Hornets tonight, finishing with a 37-point lead on 14 of 22 shots to propel the Lakers to their fourth straight win and getting a new round of MVP proclamations from their coach and teammates. equipment. .
But Ball looked like the first-placed Rookie of the Year, scoring 20 of his 26 points in the second half, while Charlotte retired from a 15-point deficit at halftime to reduce the lead to 86-85 in the triple of Ball with There are 10 minutes and 13 seconds left to finish the fourth quarter.
LeBron and LaMelo after facing each other for the first time 🤝 pic.twitter.com/wuZ9fMU6Db
– ESPN (@espn) March 19, 2021
“You could feel his excitement soon,” Hornets coach James Borrego said. “I wanted to play well and prove that I belong to this league … I think at first I was a little anxious, but he said goodbye and slowed down … I thought he was fantastic during the stretch. His struggle and his competitive spirit “.
His mistakes were aggressive mistakes, not because of any extra pressure that matched the four-time MVP. The lack of clear path, which gave James two free throws and the Lakers the ball in the next possession, demonstrated Ball’s competitiveness to defend again after a turnover.
“I had to learn a silly mistake,” Ball said of the billing (his sixth of the night), which sent him to the bench for the next 5:27.
The Hornets stayed level with the Lakers during that stretch. But they didn’t have enough time left to mount any kind of rally when Ball finally came back with a 1:43 lead and the Lakers went up 112-101. Ball added four points in the remaining time, but James and the Lakers closed it out quite easily. After the match, Ball spoke briefly with the media and then returned to the team hotel.
Due to NBA safety and health protocols, the first NBA Dance game in his hometown was lonely. The Hornets will stay in Los Angeles to play the Clippers on Saturday. In a normal year he could have seen hundreds of family and friends, just as his older brother did during his time with the Lakers. But these are not normal times.
“Life is weird right now,” Ball said, shrugging, when asked about returning home that he wasn’t returning home. “Honestly, everything feels normal. So I don’t know what’s going on.”