{"id":21434,"date":"2021-07-12T00:56:48","date_gmt":"2021-07-12T05:56:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=21434"},"modified":"2021-07-12T00:56:48","modified_gmt":"2021-07-12T05:56:48","slug":"lamelo-ball-named-best-breakthrough-athlete-at-2021-espy-awards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=21434","title":{"rendered":"LaMelo Ball named Best Breakthrough Athlete at 2021 ESPY Awards"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article post-977721 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-charlotte-hornets category-nba category-sports\" data-component=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article-header \">\n<h1 class=\"article-title\">LaMelo Ball wins best breakthrough athlete award at ESPYs<\/h1>\n<div class=\"article-meta\"><span class=\"article-meta--sep\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21436\" src=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/L-B.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"168\" \/><\/span><time datetime=\"2021-07-11T15:26:15-04:00\"><br \/>\n<\/time><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article-content rich-text \">\n<p><strong>Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball added another piece of hardware to his trophy case on Saturday night as he was named the Best Breakthrough Athlete at the 2021 ESPYs.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball, 19, received the honor after his first season in the league in which he was named the NBA Rookie of The Year. The other nominees for the award included Justin Herbert (Los Angeles Chargers), Chase Young (Washington Football Team) and Crystal Dangerfield (Minnesota Lynx).<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"nlp-ignore-block article-content rich-text\">\n<aside class=\"promo-link\"><strong><a class=\"promo-link__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fox46.com\/sports\/report-hornets-guard-lamelo-ball-named-2021-rookie-of-the-year\/\"> Hornets guard LaMelo Ball named 2021 Rookie of the Year <\/a><\/strong><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>The ESPYs took place in New York City and Ball was in attendance to accept the award.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cI thought about a speech all day and all night and I forgot everything,\u201d Ball said. \u201cI can only think about my family and my momma right now. Thank y\u2019all.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><strong>.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MELOD1P<\/a> wins Best Breakthrough Athlete and may have had the best speech so far \ud83d\ude02 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ofOkyHtG6G\">pic.twitter.com\/ofOkyHtG6G<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2014 ESPN (@espn) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/espn\/status\/1414023688312266752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 11, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Drafted third overall by the Hornets in 2020, Ball finished his rookie season averaging 15.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.6 steals in 51 games. He became the only player in the last 60 years to lead all rookies in total points, rebounds, steals and assists at the All-Star break.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>He also became the youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double on Jan. 19.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"firstHeading\" class=\"firstHeading\">LaMelo Ball<\/h1>\n<div id=\"bodyContent\" class=\"vector-body\">\n<div id=\"mw-content-text\" class=\"mw-body-content mw-content-ltr\" dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">\n<div class=\"mw-parser-output\">\n<table class=\"infobox vcard\">\n<caption class=\"infobox-title fn summary\"><strong>LaMelo Ball<\/strong><\/caption>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"infobox-image\" colspan=\"2\"><strong><a class=\"image\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:LaMelo_Ball_Illawarra_Hawks_(2)_(cropped).jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/8a\/LaMelo_Ball_Illawarra_Hawks_%282%29_%28cropped%29.jpg\/220px-LaMelo_Ball_Illawarra_Hawks_%282%29_%28cropped%29.jpg\" srcset=\"\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/8a\/LaMelo_Ball_Illawarra_Hawks_%282%29_%28cropped%29.jpg\/330px-LaMelo_Ball_Illawarra_Hawks_%282%29_%28cropped%29.jpg 1.5x, \/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/8\/8a\/LaMelo_Ball_Illawarra_Hawks_%282%29_%28cropped%29.jpg 2x\" alt=\"LaMelo Ball Illawarra Hawks (2) (cropped).jpg\" width=\"220\" height=\"355\" data-file-width=\"379\" data-file-height=\"611\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"infobox-caption\"><strong>Ball with the <a title=\"Illawarra Hawks\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Illawarra_Hawks\">Illawarra Hawks<\/a> in 2019<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-header\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>No. 2 \u2013 Charlotte Hornets<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>Position<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data role\"><strong><a title=\"Point guard\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Point_guard\">Point guard<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>League<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong><a title=\"National Basketball Association\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Basketball_Association\">NBA<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-header\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>Personal information<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>Born<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong>August 22, 2001<span class=\"noprint ForceAgeToShow\"> (age\u00a019)<\/span><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><a title=\"Anaheim, California\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Anaheim,_California\">Anaheim, California<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>Nationality<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong>American<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>Listed height<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong>6\u00a0ft 6\u00a0in (1.98\u00a0m)<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>Listed weight<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong>180\u00a0lb (82\u00a0kg)<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-header\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>Career information<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>High school<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data plainlist\">\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a title=\"Chino Hills High School\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chino_Hills_High_School\">Chino Hills<\/a><\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>(<a title=\"Chino Hills, California\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chino_Hills,_California\">Chino Hills, California<\/a>)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>SPIRE Academy<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>(<a title=\"Geneva, Ohio\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Geneva,_Ohio\">Geneva, Ohio<\/a>)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong><a title=\"NBA draft\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NBA_draft\">NBA draft<\/a><\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong><a title=\"2020 NBA draft\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020_NBA_draft\">2020<\/a> \/ Round: 1 \/ Pick: 3rd overall<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"infobox-full-data\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>Selected by the <a title=\"Charlotte Hornets\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Charlotte_Hornets\">Charlotte Hornets<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>Playing career<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong>2018\u2013present<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-header\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>Career history<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>2018<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong><a title=\"BC Prienai\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/BC_Prienai\">Prienai<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong>2018<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong><a title=\"Los Angeles Ballers\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Los_Angeles_Ballers\">Los Angeles Ballers<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong><a title=\"2019\u201320 NBL season\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2019%E2%80%9320_NBL_season\">2019\u20132020<\/a><\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong><a title=\"Illawarra Hawks\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Illawarra_Hawks\">Illawarra Hawks<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-label\" scope=\"row\"><strong><a title=\"2020\u201321 NBA season\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020%E2%80%9321_NBA_season\">2020<\/a>\u2013present<\/strong><\/th>\n<td class=\"infobox-data\"><strong><a title=\"Charlotte Hornets\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Charlotte_Hornets\">Charlotte Hornets<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th class=\"infobox-header\" colspan=\"2\"><strong>Career highlights and awards<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"infobox-full-data\" colspan=\"2\">\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a title=\"NBA Rookie of the Year Award\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NBA_Rookie_of_the_Year_Award\">NBA Rookie of the Year<\/a> (<a title=\"2020\u201321 NBA season\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020%E2%80%9321_NBA_season\">2021<\/a>)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"NBA All-Rookie First Team\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NBA_All-Rookie_First_Team\">NBA All-Rookie First Team<\/a> (<a title=\"2020\u201321 NBA season\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020%E2%80%9321_NBA_season\">2021<\/a>)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a title=\"NBL Rookie of the Year Award\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NBL_Rookie_of_the_Year_Award\">NBL Rookie of the Year<\/a> (<a title=\"2019\u201320 NBL season\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2019%E2%80%9320_NBL_season\">2020<\/a>)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a title=\"Junior Basketball Association\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Junior_Basketball_Association\">JBA<\/a> champion (<a title=\"2018 JBA season\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2018_JBA_season\">2018<\/a>)<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>JBA All-Star (2018)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"infobox-full-data\" colspan=\"2\"><strong><a class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/player\/1630163\" rel=\"nofollow\">Stats<\/a>\u00a0<a title=\"Edit this at Wikidata\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/wiki\/Q28741203#P3647\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/en\/thumb\/8\/8a\/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg\/10px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png\" srcset=\"\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/en\/thumb\/8\/8a\/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg\/15px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png 1.5x, \/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/en\/thumb\/8\/8a\/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg\/20px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png 2x\" alt=\"Edit this at Wikidata\" width=\"10\" height=\"10\" data-file-width=\"20\" data-file-height=\"20\" \/><\/a> at NBA.com<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"infobox-full-data\" colspan=\"2\"><strong><a class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/ballla01.html\" rel=\"nofollow\">Stats<\/a> at Basketball-Reference.com<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20405\" src=\"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/lamelo.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"298\" height=\"169\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>LaMelo LaFrance Ball (born August 22, 2001) is an American professional <a title=\"Basketball\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Basketball\">basketball<\/a> player for the <a title=\"Charlotte Hornets\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Charlotte_Hornets\">Charlotte Hornets<\/a> of the <a title=\"National Basketball Association\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Basketball_Association\">National Basketball Association<\/a> (NBA). He was selected by the Hornets with the third overall pick of the <a title=\"2020 NBA draft\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020_NBA_draft\">2020 NBA draft<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball began high school at <a title=\"Chino Hills High School\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chino_Hills_High_School\">Chino Hills High School<\/a> in <a title=\"Chino Hills, California\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chino_Hills,_California\">Chino Hills, California<\/a>, where he won a state championship and achieved national success as a freshman with his older brothers <a title=\"Lonzo Ball\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lonzo_Ball\">Lonzo<\/a> and <a title=\"LiAngelo Ball\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/LiAngelo_Ball\">LiAngelo<\/a>. Before his junior season, a coaching dispute prompted him to leave Chino Hills and sign with Lithuanian professional team <a title=\"BC Prienai\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/BC_Prienai\">Prienai<\/a>. In 2018, he played in the <a title=\"Junior Basketball Association\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Junior_Basketball_Association\">Junior Basketball Association<\/a> (JBA), a league created by his father, before returning to high school as a senior with SPIRE Academy in <a title=\"Geneva, Ohio\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Geneva,_Ohio\">Geneva, Ohio<\/a>. A former <a title=\"UCLA Bruins men's basketball\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/UCLA_Bruins_men%27s_basketball\">UCLA<\/a> commit, he was a five-star <a title=\"College recruiting\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/College_recruiting\">recruit<\/a> but chose to forgo college basketball amid eligibility concerns and play in Australia for the <a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"The Hawks (NBL)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Hawks_(NBL)\">Illawarra Hawks<\/a> of the <a title=\"National Basketball League (Australia)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/National_Basketball_League_(Australia)\">National Basketball League<\/a> (NBL) in 2019, winning <a title=\"NBL Rookie of the Year Award\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NBL_Rookie_of_the_Year_Award\">NBL Rookie of the Year<\/a>. He was selected by the Hornets with the third overall pick in the <a title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020_NBA_draft\">2020 NBA draft<\/a> and was named the <a title=\"NBA Rookie of the Year Award\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NBA_Rookie_of_the_Year_Award\">NBA Rookie of the Year<\/a> in 2021.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball and his brothers have attracted national attention since playing together in high school. His father, <a title=\"LaVar Ball\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/LaVar_Ball\">LaVar<\/a>, also grew into a <a title=\"Celebrity\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Celebrity\">media personality<\/a> in 2017. Ball has a signature shoe by his father&#8217;s company, <a title=\"Big Baller Brand\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Big_Baller_Brand\">Big Baller Brand<\/a>, and a role on his family&#8217;s <a title=\"Facebook Watch\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Facebook_Watch\">Facebook Watch<\/a> reality show <i><a title=\"Ball in the Family\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ball_in_the_Family\">Ball in the Family<\/a><\/i>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div id=\"page\" class=\"page\">\n<div id=\"content\" class=\"\" tabindex=\"0\">\n<div class=\"region region-content\">\n<div id=\"block-system-main\" class=\"block block-system\">\n<div class=\"content\">\n<div class=\"panel-display moscone-flipped clearfix \">\n<div class=\"moscone-flipped-container moscone-flipped-column-content clearfix\">\n<div class=\"moscone-flipped-column-content-region moscone-flipped-content panel-panel\">\n<div id=\"moscone-flipped-content-inner\" class=\"moscone-flipped-column-content-region-inner moscone-flipped-content-inner panel-panel-inner\">\n<div class=\"panel-pane pane-etowah-story-pane-photo\">\n<div class=\"pane-content\">\n<div>\n<h1><strong>LaMelo Ball Named Best Breakthrough Athlete at 2021 ESPYs<\/strong><\/h1>\n<div class=\"field field-name-field-subheadline field-type-text field-label-hidden\"><strong>Hornets Guard Wins The Award After Being Named Rookie of the Year<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"panel-pane pane-entity-field pane-node-body\">\n<div class=\"pane-content\">\n<div class=\"field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden\">\n<p><strong>July 10, 2021\u00a0\u2013 Today at the 2021 ESPYs, Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball was named the Best Breakthrough Athlete following his rookie campaign, which also earned him the 2020-21 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year. Other nominees for the award included, Justin Herbert (Los Angeles Chargers), Chase Young (Washington Football Team) and Crystal Dangerfield (Minnesota Lynx).\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball, who was selected third overall by the Hornets in the 2020 NBA Draft, averaged 15.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.6 steals in 28.8 minutes per game, appearing in 51 games (31 starts). Ball ranked 17th\u00a0in assists and ninth in steals per game among league leaders in his first season as he became the only player in the last 60 years to lead all rookies in total points, rebounds, assists and steals at the All-Star break.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball is the youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double after totaling 22 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists vs. Atlanta on Jan. 9 at 19 years and 140 days old.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"panel-pane pane-etowah-story-pane-tags\">\n<div class=\"pane-content\">\n<div class=\"c-entry-hero c-entry-hero--default \">\n<div class=\"c-entry-hero__header-wrap\">\n<h1 class=\"c-page-title\"><strong>LaMelo Ball wins ESPY for Best Breakthrough Athlete<\/strong><\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"l-segment\">\n<div class=\"c-social-buttons c-social-buttons--popover main-social\" data-cid=\"site\/social_buttons_list\/popover-1626067678_4170_10868\" data-cdata=\"{&quot;entry_id&quot;:22336022,&quot;services&quot;:[&quot;twitter&quot;,&quot;facebook&quot;,&quot;reddit&quot;,&quot;pocket&quot;,&quot;flipboard&quot;,&quot;email&quot;],&quot;base_url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/www.atthehive.com\/2021\/7\/11\/22571981\/charlotte-hornets-lamelo-ball-wins-espy-for-best-breakthrough-athlete&quot;}\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"l-sidebar-fixed l-segment l-article-body-segment\">\n<div class=\"l-col__main\">\n<figure class=\"e-image e-image--hero\"><strong><span class=\"e-image__inner\"> <span class=\"e-image__image \" data-original=\"https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg\"> <picture class=\"c-picture\" data-cid=\"site\/picture_element-1626067678_197_10869\" data-cdata=\"{&quot;image_id&quot;:69566601,&quot;ratio&quot;:&quot;*&quot;}\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/AGwWmAY3YKh1kEVtU3ZjooFRXpw=\/0x0:3074x2049\/320x213\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 320w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/Dsr7lLWhKsgvC2I07515NzJ7sX4=\/0x0:3074x2049\/620x413\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 620w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/4NKoam9kvR1wIOFhh2uZ4UJUau0=\/0x0:3074x2049\/920x613\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 920w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/pyFvSZ0B4wTUzXhKwT6otpgaNik=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1220x813\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 1220w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/l0Zu9xDCnd69hH26xZN1x65GlBY=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1520x1013\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 1520w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/tYo_cnVpbigGbIL1RnXm_MzW9HU=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1820x1213\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 1820w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/ys6zzJ-9uq7KcufE9jXJZRtaOZo=\/0x0:3074x2049\/2120x1413\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 2120w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/KygN5db0d6WbdZESTzytmciTjF0=\/0x0:3074x2049\/2420x1613\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967):format(webp)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 2420w\" type=\"image\/webp\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1221px) 846px, (min-width: 880px) calc(100vw - 334px), 100vw\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/4r3KJjpS8pod0XPXJwWreRi0P10=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1200x800\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1221px) 846px, (min-width: 880px) calc(100vw - 334px), 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/3VLVWuHvDJl_pR9Sifamhs8lwsA=\/0x0:3074x2049\/320x213\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 320w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/ArDkox1FV2_smJMXwn6A5gALO_c=\/0x0:3074x2049\/620x413\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 620w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/mO7RvvIdFbABZzqZ53mX5iTNH8o=\/0x0:3074x2049\/920x613\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 920w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/OJNFEWK5QRwA9kQHJt8eAh_dA0Q=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1220x813\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 1220w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/nF-6rY8zjPSRP6BAU8qAmnmUbJ8=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1520x1013\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 1520w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/CwJ7nkAo4DMwSkHXOaylJoX58tY=\/0x0:3074x2049\/1820x1213\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 1820w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/lS8_9SIW9_2zMDsIET-j4FYGXHk=\/0x0:3074x2049\/2120x1413\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 2120w, https:\/\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/thumbor\/674GSzYisZsPdzQrNbiqbgBLlBo=\/0x0:3074x2049\/2420x1613\/filters:focal(768x477:1258x967)\/cdn.vox-cdn.com\/uploads\/chorus_image\/image\/69566601\/usa_today_16066116.0.jpg 2420w\" alt=\"NBA: New Orleans Pelicans at Charlotte Hornets\" data-upload-width=\"3074\" \/>\u00a0<\/picture><\/span><\/span><span class=\"e-image__meta\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/figure>\n<div class=\"c-entry-content \">\n<p id=\"wdYpqq\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.atthehive.com\">Charlotte Hornets<\/a> guard LaMelo Ball has won an ESPY for Best Breakthrough Athlete.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"58sS7P\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><strong>Presenting&#8230; the BEST Breakthrough Athlete of 2021, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MELOD1P<\/a>! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/lc3QEvrnfn\">https:\/\/t.co\/lc3QEvrnfn<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/ESPYS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#ESPYS<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/QqabGMcUQ6\">pic.twitter.com\/QqabGMcUQ6<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2014 Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hornets\/status\/1414023912632037376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 11, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"ziyapB\"><strong>Ball\u2019s ESPY fill fit nicely in his trophy case right next to the NBA Rookie of the Year trophy he was awarded last month.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p id=\"TMd3Ns\"><strong>Ball beat out NFL rookies Justin Herbert and Chase Young and 2020 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.swishappeal.com\">WNBA<\/a> Rookie of the Year Crystal Dangerfield. He did so with a rookie season that was as electric as they come. He averaged 15.7 points, 6.1 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game with plenty of dazzling highlights along the way. He was the youngest player NBA history to record a triple double, doing so at age 19 years and 140 days. In his tenth game as an NBA player, he tallied 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists in a win over the Hawks.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p id=\"wEaoUM\"><strong>One of the first to congratulate Ball on the achievement was one of Charlotte\u2019s most famous non-athletes. It\u2019s a Queen City thing.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"9l12p5\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><strong>It&#8217;s a Queen City thing. <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>(via <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DaBabyDaBaby?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@DaBabyDaBaby<\/a>) <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/FzDPmG6m41\">pic.twitter.com\/FzDPmG6m41<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2014 Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hornets\/status\/1414050578737639441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 11, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"Block_tag__s36Yi\">\n<div class=\"p-4 lg:p-12\">\n<article class=\"break-normal lg:flex lg:flex-wrap\">\n<div class=\"w-full mb-6\">\n<div class=\"pb-5 mb-4 border-b border-concrete\">\n<h1 class=\"h9\">LaMelo Ball named Best Breakthrough Athlete at 2021 ESPY Awards<\/h1>\n<h2 class=\"t2 mt-3\">Ball becomes the 6th NBA player to win the award, joining LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and Donovan Mitchell.<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"w-full lg:flex\">\n<div class=\"lg:pr-3 lg:w-3\/4\">\n<div class=\"Article_article__2Ue3h\">\n<div id=\"attachment_580629\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-580629\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/manage\/2021\/07\/lamelo-ball-espy-awards-784x441.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 784px) 100vw, 784px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/manage\/2021\/07\/lamelo-ball-espy-awards-784x441.jpg 784w, https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/manage\/2021\/07\/lamelo-ball-espy-awards-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.nba.com\/manage\/2021\/07\/lamelo-ball-espy-awards.jpg 1200w\" alt=\"\" width=\"784\" height=\"441\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-580629\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-580629\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>LaMelo Ball transformed the Hornets into a must-watch team, thanks to his tremendous court vision and passing abilities.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Less than a month after being named 2020-21 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year, Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball won an ESPY for Best Breakthrough Athlete on Saturday night in New York City.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, Washington Football Team defensive lineman Chase Young and Minnesota Lynx guard Crystal Dangerfield were also nominated for the award. Herbert was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and Young the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, while Dangerfield was named WNBA Rookie of the Year.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball, 19, said he had a speech prepared but forgot what he was going to say as he was getting rained on up on the stage to accept the award.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cI forgot everything,\u201d he said. \u201cI can only think about my family right now. And my momma.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><strong>.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MELOD1P?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MELOD1P<\/a> wins Best Breakthrough Athlete and may have had the best speech so far \ud83d\ude02 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ofOkyHtG6G\">pic.twitter.com\/ofOkyHtG6G<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2014 ESPN (@espn) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/espn\/status\/1414023688312266752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 11, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Previous winners of the award include Tiger Woods (1997), Tom Brady (2002) and LeBron James (2004).<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Ball, who was selected third overall by the Hornets in the 2020 NBA Draft, averaged 15.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.6 steals in 28.8 minutes per game, appearing in 51 games (31 starts). Ball ranked 17th in assists and ninth in steals per game among league leaders in his first season as he became the only player in the last 60 years to lead all rookies in total points, rebounds, assists and steals at the All-Star break.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"lg:pl-3 lg:w-1\/4 hidden lg:block\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>LaMelo Ball wins best breakthrough athlete award at ESPYs Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball added another piece of hardware to his trophy case on Saturday night as he was named the Best Breakthrough Athlete at the 2021 ESPYs. Ball, 19, received the honor after his first season in the league in which he was named [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21435,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2405,330,11,8,1314,1456,1156,13,2404,2406,14,106,104,187,1,7,9,10],"tags":[4304,4305,3328,4303],"class_list":["post-21434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all","category-basketball-sports","category-business","category-entertainment","category-global-business-entrepreneurs","category-global-news-updates-and-more","category-global-sports","category-health","category-high-school-sports","category-mbs-hss","category-most-commented","category-nba-sports-news","category-ncaa","category-ncaa-basketball","category-news","category-sports","category-us","category-world","tag-2001-age-19-anaheim","tag-california-nationality-american-listed-height-6-ft-6-in-1-98-m-listed-weight-180-lb-82-kg-career-information-high-school-chino-hills-chino-hills","tag-california-spire-academy-geneva","tag-lamelo-balllamelo-ball-illawarra-hawks-2-cropped-jpg-ball-with-the-illawarra-hawks-in-2019-no-2-charlotte-hornets-position-point-guard-league-nba-personal-information-born-august-22","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21434","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21434"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21434\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/21435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21434"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21434"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21434"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}