LaMelo Ball sets lofty games-played goal for 2024-25

Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball.

The Charlotte Hornets missed the NBA playoffs for the eight consecutive season this year, failing to reach 30 wins for the second year in a row.

A major problem for Charlotte was the health of star guard LaMelo Ball, who played in just 22 games while dealing with ankle issues this year after signing a five-year, $260 million contract extension in the offseason.

In the Hornets exit interviews on Monday, forward Miles Bridges said Charlotte’s young star is determined to play “75 games,” next year according to The Charlotte Observer’s Rod Boone on “X.”

“LaMelo loves the game of basketball,” Bridges said in his interview.

“He wouldn’t want for anything but to play. He told me he wants to play 75, 76-plus games next year.”

Ball himself said he’s going to work hard on preparing his body to handle a full season.

“My favorite thing to do is play basketball, so not being able to do it is horrible,” Ball said in a video posted on “X,” by Jerry Donatien of ClutchPoints.

“I’m going to take the summer to get as strong as I can so I’m out there and can play.”

Despite Charlotte’s 21-61 record this year, new owners Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall have made shrewd moves to overhaul the beleaguered franchise on and off the court.

Before the season started they oversaw the selection of Brandon Miller, who trailed only Victor Wembanyama in rookie scoring with 17.3 points-per-game.

During the year they replaced Mitch Kupchak as President of Basketball Operations with Jeff Peterson from the Brooklyn Nets. They moved on from players like Terry Rozier, Gordon Hayward and P.J. Washington to bring in a swath of players headlined by Charlotte-natives Grant Williams and Seth Curry at the trade deadline.

While the Hornets were still a losing team after the deadline, they did win more games in 32 chances after the deadline (11) than in 50 before it (10).

In Ball’s tenure in Charlotte, the Hornets have been plagued with a lack of depth even when he’s healthy.

If veterans like Williams, Curry and Bridges all return to the Queen City next season and Brandon Miller is able to take his next step towards stardom, the return of Ball to the lineup consistently could well bring the Hornets back to the postseason for the first time since 2016.

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