Hornets’ LaMelo Ball likely to miss extended time with serious right ankle sprain: Sources

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball suffered a serious right ankle sprain in Sunday’s 130-117 loss to the Orlando Magic and will likely miss extended time, league sources confirmed to The Athletic on Tuesday. Here’s what you need to know:

Ball landed awkwardly while driving to the hoop against Magic forward Paolo Banchero with 8:07 left in the first half and was helped off the court.
Tests show Ball avoided a fracture in the same ankle he fractured last February, which caused him to miss the remainder of last season.
The 22-year-old is averaging 25.9 points, 8.6 assists and 5.8 rebounds a contest through 14 games.

LaMelo Ball was carried off the floor and to the locker room after landing awkwardly on this play.
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 27, 2023

What this means for Charlotte

This is obviously a rough blow for the Hornets. Ball has been Charlotte’s best player and a bright spot in a rather uninspiring season so far. He averaged 32.2 points and 8.7 assists on efficient shooting — 43.6 percent on 10.4 3-point attempts over Charlotte’s last nine games. This was the All-Star version of Ball the Hornets had hoped and paid for this summer with a rookie max extension.

Ankle sprains are tricky, so we’ll see how long this keeps Ball on the bench, but Charlotte will struggle to create shots without him. The burden will now fall on Terry Rozier, Miles Bridges, PJ Washington and Gordon Hayward. It may also shift more offensive responsibility to Brandon Miller, which at least could allow the Hornets to see what the No. 2 pick looks like in that role a little earlier than they hoped. — Mike Vorkunov, national basketball business reporter