The Charlotte Hornets made a commitment to star guard LaMelo Ball, finalizing a five-year designed rookie max extension worth as much as $260 million with the guard, ESPN and The Athletic reported Saturday.
Ball, 21, struggled with injuries last season, not playing after Feb. 27 because of a fractured right ankle. He scored 23.3 points with 6.4 rebounds and 8.4 assists in 36 games (all starts) last season.
In three seasons since he was the No. 3 overall draft pick in 2020, the Los Angeles-area native has averaged 19.4 points with 6.4 rebounds and 7.3 assists in 162 games (142 starts) for Charlotte.
Ball was named an All-Star in 2021-22, when he averaged 20.1 points and played a career-best 75 games. He earned NBA Rookie of the Year honors in 2020-21 when he averaged 15.7 points with 5.9 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 51 games (31 starts), missing time because of a wrist fracture.
–Field Level Media
