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Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball fell short of a triple-double by one assist in his first career matchup against his brother Lonzo on Friday but couldn’t be denied on Saturday against the Atlanta Hawks. Ball became the youngest player (19 years, 140 days old) in NBA history to record a triple-double and it didn’t take long for him to get there. Ball finished with 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists in his team’s 113-105 win.
It only took Ball 27 minutes to tally 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists on 9-of-10 shooting. He rattled home three shots from behind the arc and notched a steal as well in his impressive performance. The No. 3 pick from the 2020 NBA Draft stuffed the stat sheet coming off the bench and outplayed the starting backcourt. It’ll be hard to stop Ball from securing a starting spot if he keeps playing like this, as he’s been able to impact games tremendously while playing just over 24 minutes per contest.
Ball broke the record set by Orlando Magic guard Markelle Fultz, and Lonzo held the record before that. It’s probably safe to say that this won’t be the only triple-double we’ll get from the Ball in his rookie year. Ball is currently the favorite to win NBA Rookie of the Year at +100.