Hornets’ LaMelo Ball refutes viral trade report amid slow start to the season originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Charlotte Hornets star LaMelo Ball has refuted the viral report from earlier this week that he is looking to be traded.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOn Thursday, Yahoo’s Kelly Iko reported that Ball is growing increasingly frustrated with the Hornets amid their 4-11 start to the season, and is open to being traded.
However, Ball denounced those reports to the AP’s Steve Reed on Friday, saying, “He never heard that come from me, so the source is not from me. So it's just false info... I love being here,” in regards to Iko’s original report.
Ball has become the face of the franchise for the Hornets since his arrival in 2020. In six seasons with the team, he’s averaging 21.1 pounds, 7.5 assists, and 6.0 rebounds per game and has been named an All-Star one time.
Injuries have slowed Ball’s development down in recent years. He hasn’t appeared in more than 47 games in a season since the 2021-22 season, and has appeared in more than 51 games just one time in his six-year career.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOf course, the Hornets have yet to qualify for the postseason in Ball’s career, which could be leading to the supposed frustration. With another poor start to the season this year, it seems like Ball may finally be losing his patience in Charlotte.
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