LaMelo Ball has been as advertised in his rookie season: an offensive difference-maker.
Coming off the bench for the Charlotte Hornets, Ball is averaging 14.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game in 27.7 minutes per contest. The rookie has been a sight to behold for head coach James Borrego.
A career trajectory or established NBA player comparison for LaMelo Ball? It's Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers.
Similar Frames and Uprisings
LaMelo Ball stands at 6-foot-6 and has the ball in his hands more often than not when he's in the game. Simmons stands at 6-foot-11 and has the keys to the Sixers' offense. Both players are tall floor generals who were top three draft selections (Ball was the third pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, while Simmons was the first pick in the 2016 NBA Draft).
Heck, Simmons grew up in Australia and Ball played basketball in Australia last season. So, there's that.
What LaMelo Ball brings to the table
Ball has a tantalizing offensive skill set.
He does damage off the dribble. Ball gets to the rim and finishes in style and at times with ease, is a nifty passer, and has an emerging jump shot. In his 2019-20 campaign in the NBL, Ball shot just 25.0 percent from beyond the arc. This season, he's shooting 35.4 percent from beyond the arc.
The fascinating aspect of Ball's outside shooting is that he always shoots the long ball with frequency, and he's sinking jump shots with better efficiency today compared to previous years.
The youngest of LaVar Ball's son has been instant offense off the Hornets bench, both in the form of scoring and facilitating. He attracts considerable defensive attention by employing crafty playmaking. His lanky shot and ability to step back and/or fadeaway helps him create separation. When Ball attacks the rack and runs into a wall, someone is open underneath for an easy bucket.
He's taking attention off youngsters like PJ Washington and Miles Bridges and assisting veterans Gordon Hayward and Terry Rozier, who are each averaging 20-plus points per game this season.
Sure enough, the best is yet to come for Ball.
What Ben Simmons brings to the table
For what it's worth, Ben Simmons is a physical specimen.
He finds his teammates and hits the boards at a high rate and is a force to be reckoned with when he has a step on his defender. Moreover, the Aussie point-forward gets inside off the dribble in the halfcourt and is a defensive disrupter. While his production hasn't improved to a noteworthy degree, he has been a highly productive player across his three and a half seasons in the NBA.
For his career, Simmons is averaging 16.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game while shooting 56.0 percent from the field. He's an impactful player on both ends of the floor and the conductor of the Sixers' offense. He gets the ducks in a row, is assertive with the ball in his hands, and lethal in the fastbreak.
Simmons' sheer speed is the impetus for his game. It helps him score off the dribble, hit the boards, and start the fastbreak while forcing teams to send a second defender–subsequently opening up a teammate for an open look.
If this is the player Ball will be for the next eight years, it's a darn good one.
LaMelo Ball is on a path to stardom
LaMelo Ball and Ben Simmons are not literal carbon copies of each other. Ball is a capable shooter, whereas Simmons has attempted 30 career 3-pointers. Simmons is an exceptional defender, whereas Ball is lacking a bit in that regard.
The underlying similarity between these two players is that they're tall floor generals whose offensive bedrock is their athleticism. Their positives and negatives balance out each other. If Ball's play extrapolates well across starting minutes in both production and impact, the Hornets have a franchise player on their hands.
Simmons' play is often critiqued given his shooting shortcomings and the 76ers failing to break through in the Eastern Conference, and understandably so. But that doesn't mean Simmons can't be a primary catalyst for a championship team. He's too impactful of a player for that to be the case.
Ball growing into a right-handed version of Simmons lifts the Hornets into contention.
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