When it comes to NBA trade rumors, there was a bit of a buzz caused this past week when a report came out that Charlotte Hornets point guard LaMelo Ball might be open to a trade amid the team’s poor start to the season. Following the report, Ball took to social media to essentially deem the report as false. And over the weekend, new information seemed to suggest that any trade rumors involving the Hornets’ star guard don’t have much merit, as of now, as per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.
Although Fischer acknowledges that potential LaMelo Ball trade talks could ultimately heat up as it gets closer to the trade deadline, there isn’t much there presently.
“By Thursday afternoon, I’d heard enough from rival team executives curious about the availability of LaMelo Ball that checking in with sources holding direct knowledge of Ball’s status was a must. Yet I was cautioned almost as quickly that it would be premature to go too far in depth on Ball’s trade candidacy,” Fischer reports. “One source said it was way too soon. Another source passed along that the Hornets might eventually reach a point before the Feb. 5 trade deadline that they decide to seriously field offers for the former All-Star guard but echoed the notion that we’re not there yet.”
Fischer also reports that Ball is among the top guards, along with Ja Morant and Trae Young, that are being monitored by rival teams regarding their potential trade availability. All three players are currently on teams that are underachieving through the first month of the regular season.
Ball has appeared in 1o of the Hornets’ first 16 games at a little over 30 minutes per game. He’s averaging 21.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 9.3 assists and 1.3 steals with splits of 39.3 percent shooting from the field, 28.6 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 87.5 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
