On Wednesday, November 16th, 2022 the Charlotte Hornets young NBA All – Star point guard, LaMelo Ball, reinjured his ankle at the end of the Charlotte Hornets’ loss to the Indiana Pacers. This contest was Ball’s first home game of the season, and it did not go nearly as well as LaMelo or the Charlotte Hornets had hoped.

The Injury Play

The Charlotte Hornets eventually ended up losing the game to the Indiana Pacers with the final score of 125 – 113 on last Wednesday night, but LaMelo also reinjured his left ankle that he has been nursing to get back on the court for the Charlotte Hornets after Ball accidentally stepped on a courtside fan’s foot with only 1 – minute and 34 – seconds remaining in the basketball game.

On this play, LaMelo was attempting to save the ball from getting out of bounds when Ball stepped on an unexpected as well as seated fan’s foot close to the Charlotte Hornets bench while LaMelo strained to brace his body from wildly flying into the crowd of fans.

Ball’s left ankle just so happens to be the same ankle that resulted in LaMelo to miss a significant portion of the 2022 NBA  preseason as well as the initial 13 – regular season games of the year.

The Status of LaMelo Ball following Wednesday Night’s Game

The Charlotte Hornets head coach in Steve Clifford claimed that he had no immediate information on the overall status of LaMelo’s injured ankle, and Ball was purposefully not made available to speak publicly to the major sports media outlets following Wednesday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers. The Charlotte Hornets next game is at Cleveland versus the Cavaliers on the night of Friday, November 18, 2022.

This last contest for the Charlotte Hornets marked just the 3rd – game for Ball being back ever since his initial left ankle injury occurred during the 2022 NBA preseason, and it was his 1st – home game since his return as well. Wednesday night’s game all started with LaMelo receiving a huge introduction from the Charlotte Hornets public address announcer and very loud applause from the Charlotte Hornets’ home fans during the pre – game introductions, but unfortunately it all ended with Ball having to exit the game in the 4th – quarter with a bad grimace on his face while LaMelo had to limp of the court all the way to the Charlotte Hornets locker room.

LaMelo Ball’s Performance vs. the Indiana Pacers

During the basketball match – up LaMelo Ball was unbelievably good when he was playing as he finished the game with 26 – points on 10 – out – of – 17 shooting that included a total of five 3 – point field goals. Ball also managed to dish out 6 – assists to his teammates while only turning the ball over 4 – times.

“He was great tonight,” the Charlotte Hornets head coach, Steve Clifford, exclaimed.

Other Injuries the Charlotte Hornets are Dealing with at the Moment

The Charlotte Hornets have been severely revenged by injuries throughout the early portion of the 2022 – 2023 NBA season. Along with the injury to Ball who has had to miss 13 – games already, the Charlotte Hornets’ Cody Martin has missed all but 1 – game with a quad injury as well as a knee ailment that eventually resulted in a surgical procedure to fix the issue. Gordon Hayward has missed the previous 8 – games for the Charlotte Hornets with a shoulder injury, and finally Dennis Smith sat out of the past 3 – games with a sprained ankle.

Earlier in the day on Wednesday, November 16th, 2022 the Charlotte Hornets also unfortunately announced that their 1st – round NBA draft pick Mark Williams sustained an ankle injury while playing basketball for the G – League’s team in the Greensboro Swarm. Terry Rozier also had to miss 7 – games with an ankle injury of his own this year.

Hopefully the Charlotte Hornets can stop the bleeding and get back to full strength soon as they are currently sitting with a poor overall record of 4 and 12 on the young 2022 – 2023 NBA season. The Charlotte Hornets forward P. J. Washington explained that he is anxious for the upcoming day the Charlotte Hornets are back to full strength.

“It’s very tough but we have to be professionals about it,” the Charlotte Hornets guard, Kelly Oubre Jr., explained “It’s the game of basketball and those things happen. But people who are suited up and who are healthy enough to go out there, we have to go pick up that slack.”

“We all know at some point everybody’s going to get back out there, and we can’t wait for it,” the Charlotte Hornets forward, P. J. Washington, expressed. “But right now, the problem is we’re losing games, so we’ve got to figure it out and start getting some wins.”

The Charlotte Hornets have now lost 9 of their last 10 – ball games following their average 3 and 3 start to the 2022 – 2023 NBA season with their win over the struggling defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors.

LaMelo Ball’s Basketball Career Achievements, Honors, & Awards

  • NBA All – Star Selection (2022)
  • NBA Rookie of the Year Award Winner (2021)
  • NBA All – Rookie First – Team Selection (2021)
  • NBL Rookie of the Year Award Winner (2020)
  • JBA Champion (2018)
  • JBA All – Star Selection (2018)