LaMelo Ball seemed irreplaceable in Charlotte. When Ball shared the floor with Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel, the Hornets posted a 130.3 offensive rating, which was the best of any three-man combo that appeared in at least 60 games last season. When Ball went to the bench, Charlotte’s offensive rating plummeted to 110.6. LaMelo was the engine of the NBA’s most devastating lineup. So now that he has been traded to Minnesota, how the hell are the Hornets supposed to replace him?
There is no one on the Hornets who can replicate exactly what LaMelo was able to do. But Charlotte’s bet is that it won’t need one player to do it. Instead, the Hornets will try to replace Ball collectively.
(Mallory Bielecki/Yahoo Sports Illustration)
Asking White to reproduce the LaMelo experience would be asking him to become somebody he isn’t. He isn’t going to fling 50-foot hit-aheads with either hand or manipulate defenders with the same casual flair. But White can score. He’s one of the league’s highest-volume 3-point shooters, and he’s comfortable launching off the catch or pulling up behind a screen.
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We already saw his shotmaking translate when the stakes were highest:
With Charlotte’s season on the line against Miami in the play-in, White buried a turnaround 3 with 10.8 seconds remaining to force overtime in an eventual Hornets win.
White also gives Charlotte something its old core desperately lacked: consistent rim pressure. Last season, 33% of White’s half-court shots came at the rim, compared to only 18% for Ball, per Synergy Sports. Miller and Knueppel got there even less frequently than LaMelo, leaving Charlotte overly dependent on jumpers when defenses managed to keep it out of the paint.
That weakness was exposed in Charlotte’s season-ending play-in loss to Orlando. The Hornets attempted 45 3-pointers but scored only 28 points in the paint as the Magic blew them out 121-90. Even in the win against Miami, it felt like a miracle when the Hornets made a layup.
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Giving more touches to White (and to his backup Dennis Schröder) should help manufacture more buckets since they can put their heads down and get into the teeth of the defense. In the limited minutes White played without Ball last season, Charlotte had a 126.2 offensive rating. The sample is for only 309 minutes, but it’s at least one piece of evidence that what White offers could help Charlotte stay competitive.
Brandon Miller has to become a star
If Charlotte wants to eventually become a serious playoff team, Miller will need to make the leap from talented youngster to dependable star. Charlotte selected Miller second in the draft, behind Victor Wembanyama and ahead of Scoot Henderson, because he is 6-foot-7, scores from all three levels and can deliver dimes across the court. But the next step is developing his end-of-clock scoring.
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Last season, Miller ranked 61st out of 66 players in isolation scoring efficiency among those who logged at least 100 possessions, per Synergy Sports. With Ball gone, the opportunities to develop that skill are about to multiply. Will Miller’s efficiency rise with more chances or stay near the bottom of the league? It’s a question the Hornets — and everyone else around the league — would love an answer to with Miller one year away from restricted free agency.
But the larger issue with Miller has been his availability. This summer, Miller was rehabilitating another injury after undergoing surgery in May to address instability in his left shoulder. He originally subluxed the shoulder in October, missed 13 games, then returned and played with it wrapped. Miller still averaged 20.2 points and shot a career-best 38% from 3 while managing the shoulder pain. So maybe the surgery will unlock a healthier and better version.
The bet on Kon Knueppel
Knueppel led the NBA in made 3s as a rookie, but whether all that shooting gravity unlocks the rest of his game remains a question. Knueppel isn’t the twitchiest creator, but he plays with pace and feel. He can use a screen, get into the lane and make the smart pass. Or he can attack a closeout and finish with crafty floaters.
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These tools have made him more than a shooting specialist going back to high school, which is why he was the fourth pick in the draft and not a late first-rounder.
Without Ball, Knueppel can explore areas of his game. If his on-ball creation comes around sooner than anyone could anticipate, it will raise the ceiling of the Hornets.
The frontcourt changes the geometry
The key player the Hornets got back for LaMelo was Naz Reid, who gives head coach Charles Lee a big capable of bombing 3s and attacking a lumbering big. Those skills change everything about the way the Hornets can play.
Charlotte can now put five legitimate shooters on the floor, so we’ll see inverted pick-and-rolls with Knueppel screening for Reid. There will be two-big lineups with Moussa Diabate crashing the boards inside and Reid spacing on the perimeter. Or instead of Diabate, maybe the Hornets could utilize the size and interior defense of second-year center Ryan Kalkbrenner.
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Versatility is usually discussed in the context of defense and whether a player can guard multiple positions. But lineup versatility matters too. The more combinations a coach can put on the floor, the more shapes his team can take. Charlotte’s plethora of options in the frontcourt gives Lee different flavors. The Hornets can play large, small, fast, physical or all-out offense.
That versatility is indirectly part of the Ball replacement, too, which is a big reason why Charlotte also drafted center Hannes Steinbach with the 14th pick in June. While it’d be unreasonable to put huge expectations on a rookie, he already has some readymade skills that fit precisely with how the Hornets want to play.
Rebounding was the top strength I listed for Steinbach in my NBA Draft Guide because he has magnets for hands and brings physicality that can punish teams for downsizing. The Hornets finished second in the NBA in offensive rebounding rate last season, so Steinbach should fit right in. But he offers far more skill than a typical glass-eating big. He can make a stationary jumper, pass from the elbows and function as an offensive hub.
The long game
The underlying trend found in all of Charlotte’s moves this summer is a desire to play different ways. The LaMelo offense worked, but his presence may have proved to be redundant with White, put a ceiling on what Miller and Knueppel could become, and didn’t really vibe with the types of bigs the roster can now feature.
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And as good as Ball was, he wasn’t necessarily the most efficient or the most durable. That’s why the Hornets drafted a rookie point guard with the 18th pick. Christian Anderson averaged 18.6 points and 7.5 assists while shooting 41.5% from 3 as a Texas Tech sophomore. Much like LaMelo, he’s rim-adverse, but he also brings a crafty midrange and downtown scoring ability, plus a desire to pass the ball. The Hornets can let Anderson develop behind veterans, and if all works out he could eventually move into a starting spot or a spark-plug role.
Of course, spreading the ball around won’t automatically make Charlotte better. Someone still has to create a good shot when a possession breaks down. There will be nights when the Hornets miss having LaMelo to figure that out for them.
But Charlotte’s plan doesn’t need to be completed today. Steinbach and Anderson are rookies. Miller is 23. Knueppel is entering Year 2. The Hornets are betting that the growing pains will be worth it, and that the players who once benefited from LaMelo’s creativity can eventually become the ones driving the offense.
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