LaMelo Ball has only played in 162 games across his first three NBA seasons, with injury after injury limiting the former No. 3 overall pick.
But those concerns didn’t stop the Hornets from reaching an agreement with Ball on a five-year, $260 million maximum contract extension, according to The Athletic.
Ball averaged 23.3 points per game in 2022-23, but he missed the final 19 games of the season following a fractured ankle that occurred when he attempted a crossover dribble against the Pistons.
He also missed the first 13 games of the regular season with a Grade 2 sprain in his left ankle, which occurred in the preseason when the Wizards’ Anthony Gill stepped on the area around Ball’s foot.
Then, three games after returning and making his season debut, Ball aggravated the same injury, and it sidelined him again.
But with the new contract, Ball remains a key piece of a Charlotte lineup that includes Brandon Miller, the controversial Alabama star who the franchise selected with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Head coach Steve Clifford predicted at the end of the regular season that Ball would return and be fully healed by training camp, according to NBA.com.
He was still in a walking boot at that point, but the recovery was still, all things considered, close.
“It’s a big summer and I’m just trying to get back healthy,” Ball told reporters during his exit interview, according to NBA.com. “I’m looking forward to next season. Just listening to the trainers and going from there.”
Miller has already predicted that the Hornets, who finished 27-55 in 2022-23, will reach the NBA Finals next season, too.
“Hopefully, we will get there and get the big trophy in the end,” Miller told WCNC Charlotte.
If they even get close to that goal, Ball’s play — and presence on the court — will serve as a critical factor.
He played a career-best 75 games in 2021-22, which also featured his lone All-Star appearance en route to averaging 20.1 points per game,