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The Charlotte Hornets fell to the Washington Wizards, dropping them 0-3 in the preseason. There was lot of excitement around the organization because Gordon Hayward has not played basketball since April in 2022, though LaMelo Ball's injury put a damper on the occasion.
LaMelo Ball's injury
LaMelo stepped on the foot of Wizards big man Anthony Gill, causing him to roll his left ankle. Steve Clifford has considered him day-to-day and said that he will not play in Philadelphia for a matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday.
Ball is the head of the snake for this unit. Hopefully the sprain on his ankle is nothing too severe.
Here's the play where LaMelo Ball sprained his left ankle vs. the Wizards:pic.twitter.com/MRpRU5bqNU
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 11, 2022
“It's tough seeing your brother go down,” Terry Rozier said about LaMelo's injury. “That's the franchise, a big part of this team. We're with him and we know that things are going to be alright.”
The Hornets kick off the regular season on October 19th against the San Antonio Spurs in Texas. Ball has time to recover and make it back in time if the sprain is minor. Every game matters once the regular season tips off.
Hornets' plan for Gordon Hayward
Going back to Gordon Hayward, seeing him get some preseason action was reassuring to see for the coaching staff, organization, and the fans. Hayward finished with six points in 12 minutes of action. He played limited minutes, but looked good in the flow of the game.
“Gordon out there to me was great,” coach Steve Clifford said. “He looks to me a lot more in rhythm. He hasn't been able to do as much and he looks good. He said he felt good.”
The Hornets are always a better team with Hayward on the floor. Hopefully they continue to monitor his minutes throughout the long haul of the season. Clifford did admit that Hayward will not play 82 games this 2022-23 campaign.
“He needs to be honest about the way he feels. He badly wants to be on the floor,” Clifford continued. His health will play a major role on the Hornets' season moving forward. He is going to have to be the teams second or third scoring option in order for this team to be competitive on a nightly basis.
