After falling off the Rookie of the Year ladder due to his six-week absence, LaMelo Ball of the Charlotte Hornets has put himself back to the conversation with two strong games right off the bat. But according to Ball himself, that's far from what he's zeroing on at this point of the season.
“Mostly winning,” LaMelo Ball said when asked if the ROTY race is on his mind, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “Definitely, it would be playoffs first. But mostly, just winning.”
After missing a total of 21 games, Ball went back to work and tallied 11 points, eight rebounds and seven assists against the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. Ball then followed that up with 14 points, six boards, five dimes and four steals against the Miami Heat the night after.
Though Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves overtook Ball and grabbed the top spot in this year's rookie class with his own outstanding performance, LaMelo'sred-hot form is quickly proving that this season's ROTY award should be headed his way.
As impressive as his individual play has been, the 19-year-old wants to put his team's success first. The Hornets have been struggling in the second half of the 2020-21 NBA season and Ball is hoping that his return could infuse some much-needed energy to Charlotte's young roster. They've dropped five of their last eight games and have fallen down to the eighth spot of the Eastern Conference.
With a few games left before the regular season ends, LaMelo Ball is hoping that he could lead his Hornets to their first trip back to the postseason in three years.
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