Mar 23, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) reacts against the Miami Heat during the second half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Rhona Wise-Imagn Images Rhona Wise-Imagn Images

NBA analyst predicts surprise LaMelo Ball trade request

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Apr 24, 2025 9:20 AM ET

The Charlotte Hornets have said time and again that they do not want to trade LaMelo Ball. Most recently, Ball himself said he's tired of the people telling him he needs to leave Charlotte. The point guard insists he wants to stay and keep building, understanding that it takes time to do that. He likes everything about his situation, and he doesn't want to be traded.

That said, there's still a feeling in the NBA world that he might want out. The Hornets aren't a premier franchise, and they were just voted by players as the worst franchise in the sport. Despite Ball's statements and the team's public stance, there are mock trades galore.

Perhaps this is because the media, despite all the criticism thrown Ball's way, knows he is a uniquely talented NBA player who probably does deserve to be on a team that can win games more consistently. That's why Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley thinks Ball might want to ask out soon.

Buckley acknowledged that the team wants him and that he wants to stay, but he still listed him as one of the five most likely superstar trade requests (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, Ja Morant, and Domantas Sabonis).

"There might be 179 reasons, actually, as in the number of losses Charlotte has suffered over the past three seasons. If that sounds like an enormous amount, that's because it is," Buckley said. "No other franchise has lost at this level during that stretch."

The insider said the duo of Ball and Brandon Miller is exciting, but there is otherwise nothing to write home about in Charlotte. Mark Williams, perhaps the third piece of the core, was traded and then failed a physical. Tidjane Salaun "was a 4th-percentile performer as a rookie, per Dunks & Threes' estimated plus/minus." Miles Bridges just endured a pretty bad shooting year.

"If Charlotte's core is simply Ball-plus-Miller, it wouldn't be remotely challenging to sniff out a better situation elsewhere. And that's just the basketball side of things," the analyst argued. "While Ball's brand isn't exactly hurting, he could still see a big boost on the business front by landing in a major market and with a team that won more than 30 percent of the time."

This logic is not flawed. It makes sense that a player who's been with a team since 2020 and that team has been unable to even come close to the playoffs might be frustrated. But that ignores Ball's own clear intentions and the fact that he is under contract for a long time with Charlotte.

Sure, trade requests happen out of the blue all the time, but not really right after an extension and not really right after saying they want to stay.