Returning to the court after a 21-game absence, LaMelo Ball has taken over the Kia Rookie Ladder No. 1 spot.
Ball, who suffered a broken wrist back in March and was thought to be done for the season, has been on fire since rejoining the Hornets lineup.
He kicked off his return with a ridiculous, almost full-court underhanded assist to Miles Bridges in the Hornets 107-94 win over the Detroit Pistons.
LAMELO WASTING NO TIME IN HIS RETURN! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/u0MTDjqLk2
— NBA (@NBA) May 1, 2021
In his last five games, Melo is averaging 16.2 points, 6.6 assists, and 6.6 rebounds, slightly above his season averages of 15.8 points, 6.2 assists, and 6.0 rebounds.
Ball has been seen holding his wrist and using a heating pad while on the bench, but he’s expected to remain in the lineup as long as the Hornets are still competing.
At 33-36, Charlotte is holding on to the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference, looking at a possible play-in with the Boston Celtics.
The Minnesota Timberwolves Anthony Edwards holds onto the No. 2 spot on the Kia Rookie Ladder.
Edwards is averaging 18.9 points, 2.9 assists, and 4.8 rebounds and recently tied Christian Lattner’s 29-year-old record for most 20-point games (33) for a Minnesota rookie.
Jae’ Sean Tate with the Houston Rockets takes the No. 3 spot with season averages of 11.2 points, 2.5 assists, and 5.4 rebounds.
At No. 4 is Tyrese Haliburton with the Sacramento Kings averaging 13.0 points, 5.3 assists, and 3.0 rebounds a game.
Rounding out the top 5 is the Detroit Pistons’ Saddiq Bey, who is averaging 11.9 points, 1.3 assists, and 7.0 rebounds.
With just a few more games to go, it seems that LaMelo Ball is everything his dad hyped him up to be.