{"id":22104,"date":"2021-08-18T07:36:27","date_gmt":"2021-08-18T12:36:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=22104"},"modified":"2021-08-18T07:36:27","modified_gmt":"2021-08-18T12:36:27","slug":"generation-lamelo-the-charlotte-hornets-nba-franchise-global-player-of-the-now-and-forever-lamelo-ball-is-the-nba-the-new-face-of-the-sports-platform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=22104","title":{"rendered":"“Generation LaMelo.”, THE CHARLOTTE HORNETS NBA FRANCHISE GLOBAL PLAYER OF THE NOW AND FOREVER. LAMELO BALL IS THE NBA, THE NEW FACE OF THE SPORTS PLATFORM"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Jacket, $9,300, and pants (price upon request) by Dior Men. Tank top (price upon request) by Amiri. Jewelry (throughout), his own.
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@MELOD1P<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
To everyone’s surprise except his own, LaMelo Ball is the best young player in the NBA\u2014and the avatar of its future.<\/strong><\/div>\n
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I hear LaMelo Ball before I see him. \u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d he exclaims when entering a room, his electric, beaming smile bouncing off the walls. \u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d he moans on the Charlotte Hornets’ practice court after an assistant coach scratches him across the eye. \u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d he whistles when I play Babyface Ray’s recent banger, \u201cReal N-ggas Don’t Rap,\u201d for him. The high-pitched screech is American vernacular at its wackiest, a sensational slang used all over TikTok to signify excitement and appreciation. But for LaMelo it’s almost like punctuation. He’s fluent in a patois drawn straight from the viral internet.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In fact, he regards himself as a kind of viral entity in his own right. \u201cHow do I feel about memes?\u201d he ponders for a tick before giggling wryly. \u201cI grew up with this shit.\u201d LaMelo’s impact on his teammates is \u201clike getting infected,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt’s a whole different swagger and everything. N-ggas carry theyselves different. N-ggas goin’ to they jobs different. Ya feel me?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

I’m not entirely sure that I do until I sit with James Borrego in the Hornets head coach’s office and he cranes his head back and booms that familiar sound: \u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d I had asked Borrego to encapsulate LaMelo’s fabulous rookie season. To which the coach cups his mouth, widens his eyes, and loopily blurts like his star player.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Coat, $3,650, by Prada. Hoodie and pants (prices upon request) by Supreme. T-shirt, $42 for pack of three, by Calvin Klein Underwear. Shoes, $690, by Lanvin. Socks, $18 for three pairs, by Gold Toe. Sunglasses, $750, by Jacques Marie Mage.<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I start saying sheeeeeeeeeeeesh right back, and it goes on like this for a few seconds, as if we’ve lost control of our bodies.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d Borrego says.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d I shoot back. We both chuckle, contaminated like all of Charlotte by the LaMelo contagion.<\/strong><\/p>\n

But honestly, what other word is there? \u201cSheeeeeeeeeeeesh!\u201d is the logical response to LaMelo’s video game passes, all-court vision, and fast-break theatrics, which propelled him to one of the greatest statistical seasons by a 19-year-old in NBA history, the Rookie of the Year award, and the role of franchise centerpiece on the traditionally moribund Hornets. And it’s in keeping with his massive online popularity with the next generation of basketball fans; he ranks sixth in Instagram followers gained and views generated in the 2020\u201321 regular season, according to internal NBA rankings\u2014LeBron James and Steph Curry territory.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Hoodie and pants (prices upon request) by Supreme. T-shirt, $42 for pack of three, by Calvin Klein Underwear. Shoes, $690, by Lanvin. Socks, $18 for three pairs, by Gold Toe. Sunglasses, $750, by Jacques Marie Mage.<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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To hear LaMelo tell it, all this was preordained. \u201cMy whole life, I always knew I was going to the NBA,\u201d he says. \u201cI always knew. Everything about this felt normal to me. I knew I’d have stardom. I grew up into it. I already had my life planned out. My whole life, I thought I was the star…. I ain’t even gonna say I’m a rock star. It’s something other than that. I’m something rare.\u201d He has been famous since at least the age of 15, when he scored 92 points in a high school game and his father, LaVar, started a publicity campaign touting the basketball talents of his three sons, which would often lead national sports news broadcasts.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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LaVar had a dream built in the image of Richard Williams, Mario Andretti, and Archie Manning: Lonzo, LiAngelo, and LaMelo would become NBA superstars playing fun, run-and-gun basketball. And for a while the perfectly named Balls were the first family of hoops, the Kardashians of the court, with a reality-based Facebook show and a self-owned apparel company. If Lonzo was the brooding brother and LiAngelo the quiet type, LaMelo was regarded as the jocular one.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Coat, $995, by R13. Sweater, $1,220, and jeans, $810, by Louis Vuitton Men\u2019s. Belt, $390, by Amiri. Boots, $1,550, by Dior Men. Hat, $350, by Marine Serre.<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Then Lonzo struggled as the number two pick with the Lakers, LaVar retreated from the spotlight, and 16-year-old LaMelo decided to leave high school and skip college for professional basketball in Lithuania, where LiAngelo joined him, and then Australia. Naturally, he has no regrets: \u201cYou wanna go to the league, so school’s not your priority.\u201d He thinks the NCAA has to change and there should be more options for kids to make money before they get to the NBA (the Supreme Court opened a pathway toward that in a landmark ruling shortly after our interview). \u201cWe not trippin’ off school. We not dumb. We know how to learn. We don’t need school. And school not even teachin’ you shit\u2014what the fuck is school?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

He felt isolated in Lithuania, and the local fans weren’t the kindest either. \u201cN-ggas was throwin’ waters and Gatorades and they drinks at n-ggas and all that shit,\u201d he says. In Australia, he was a constant triple-double threat but, after playing just 12 games before sitting out the season, also a mystery. When he entered the 2020 NBA draft, \u201cthere [was] a narrative out there,\u201d Borrego tells me. \u201cIt can be complicated bringing a player like Melo in. \u2018Will it be just about Melo?\u2019 \u2018Can you coach the kid?\u2019 \u2018Is there gonna be a show in town?\u2019 \u2018How much is the family involved?\u2019 Those were all questions that were being thrown at us.\u201d When he was drafted, The Charlotte Observer<\/em> wrote that the Hornets had made a mistake and he’d never mature into a star. \u201cThere were questions about this, questions about that,\u201d his manager, Jermaine Jackson, says, smirking. \u201cAll those questions got erased real fast, as you see. All them people and reporters sayin’ that shit, and you see what they doin’ now?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Coat (price upon request) by Lanvin. Vest, $1,200, by Prada. Pants, $1,190, by Balenciaga. Sneakers, $125, by Puma. Sunglasses, $230, by Retrosuperfuture.<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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LaMelo’s behavior matches his charmed life. He flashes and flexes the type of accoutrements that only a playful prodigy would enjoy. He drives a garish sherbet orange Lambo around Charlotte\u2014a whip so icy folks flip out their phones to catch it, along, of course, with the city’s new luminary behind the wheel. His bright custom grills and matching chain dance under the sunlight. One night during my visit, before attending a baseball game, he curated a loud fit equipped with sunglasses and studded, red-bottom kicks. He pays close attention to what others are wearing too, at one point poking fun at the Birkenstocks he’d seen me sporting during the course of our time together. \u201cMannn,\u201d he says. \u201cYou love you some Jesus slides, huh?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

But for all the big-time swagger and adult-size responsibilities, he’s also still just a teenager who loves Stranger Things<\/em> and is afraid of spiders, thanks to his time Down Under. \u201cNahhhh, man. In Australia? Big-ass<\/em> spiders. I’m talking this<\/em> big,\u201d he says, tilting his head back in disgust, measuring the size of his shaggy locks to demonstrate. \u201cHellll naw! That bitch was too<\/em> big!\u201d As for Stranger Things:<\/em> \u201cThe concept? The way that shit look? Number Eleven? She goin’ crazy! That shit hard<\/em> as fuck! Her lil’ nose be bleedin’?\u201d LaMelo begins to wipe his nostrils, emulating the rapper Young Thug. \u201cSlime! Kill a n-gga!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Coat, $8,000, pants, $5,350, and boots, $990, by Bottega Veneta. Tank top, $42 for pack of three, by Calvin Klein Underwear. Sunglasses, $266, by Oakley.<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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To spend time with him is to listen to an endless assortment of mantras and boasts, an Ali-esque aplomb filtered through Aaron McGruder’s and Dan Harmon’s eyes. He describes himself mainly in internet parlance and lavish eccentricities. In conversation the dialogue becomes a zigzag. One minute he’s \u201csomething you’ve never seen,\u201d the next he’s \u201cone of one,\u201d then he’s \u201crare\u201d or \u201cthe golden child\u201d or he’s \u201cnot from here.\u201d (Catchphrases like these will adorn his first Puma signature sneaker, out in October.)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Take the way he explains one of his current favorites while we’re talking on a balcony in his apartment building in Charlotte. \u201cEverybody always asks me what’s my slogan\u2014kids, old people, adults. Two words, breh: Be you. Because if you ain’t you, you being somebody else and you already fucked up from the jump. So now whatever you trying to do, it ain’t never you. Either you gonna be unhappy or something is fucked up,\u201d he says, wistfully gazing out across the city. \u201cSay you building something and you got all the instructions and you fuck up from the beginning? N-gga, you ain’t never gonna build that shit. Ever. You just gotta be you from the jump, and whatever supposed to happen gonna happen. But if you ain’t you, you already lost.\u201d He’s rolling now, occasionally turning and staring for a second as if I’m supposed to know his punch line before he delivers it, offering a tiny grin between his words, motioning and winking like I’m in the front row of his comedy special. LaMelo congratulates himself on his homily. \u201cThat’s a fact. That’s a big fact!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Jacket, $9,300, and pants (price upon request) by Dior Men. Tank top (price upon request) by Amiri. Sneakers, $750, by Christian Louboutin. Socks, $27, by Falke. Sunglasses, $270, by Prada Linea Rossa.<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Historically speaking, playing in Charlotte has come with frequent calamity\u2014the team has not progressed past the first round of the playoffs in 20 years, and it owns the worst regular-season record of all time. Hornets owner Michael Jordan is often mocked for the ragtag crews he shepherds onto the court each season. But getting superstars to flock to small-market franchises is virtually impossible, meaning the bulk of the team building has to come through the draft. In LaMelo, Charlotte basketball has a future for the first time since Kemba Walker came to town a decade ago or Larry Johnson and Muggsy Bogues controlled Buzz City in the ’90s.<\/strong><\/p>\n

At this point, LaMelo’s talent is undeniable, \u201ca jolt this program has needed, this city has needed,\u201d Borrego says. Still, Borrego feels that someone has to hold LaMelo accountable. \u201cThere’s times you have to speak the truth to young players, and Melo’s no exception,\u201d Borrego explains. LaMelo didn’t immediately follow the patterns that turn boys into men and rookies into professionals in the NBA, he says. \u201cThe habits of being on time. Not skipping a weight session. Studying your playbook. Knowing your plays. These are areas of growth that he’s working on.\u201d He’s trying to drill those habits into LaMelo now. \u201cLet’s not wait three or four years, when he’s too far gone and already a star. Then you can’t pull him back.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

LaMelo is a star right now. The goal for all parties is for him to mature into a bona fide supernova and even bring a championship to Charlotte, which sounds unlikely now but, if LaMelo progresses as he should, is no longer completely crazy to dream of. \u201cThat’s definitely the plan, man,\u201d LaMelo says. \u201cI want to be here for a long time. I love the game. I love being around it. This is what I wanted to do with my life.\u201d All summer he’s been in Charlotte, perfecting his craft with tailored workouts and 2 a.m. gym sessions. If LaMelo stays healthy this season\u2014he missed 21 games last year\u2014Charlotte has a chance to evolve from League Pass Legends to the national stage as frisky fringe contenders in the Eastern Conference. Borrego believes LaMelo can transform the Hornets’ fortunes: \u201cHe has the potential to lead that charge more than anyone we’ve seen in this city in a long time.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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While I’m sitting with Borrego, I hear a cacophony of \u201cyerr\u201ds from down the hallway outside his office. It turns out that Miles Bridges, Charlotte’s other young talent, has just surprised LaMelo with the Rookie of the Year trophy on camera. Before I can get there, he’s darted away from the arena in that Lambo, his prize in hand, disappearing into the maze of downtown Charlotte.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I thought I’d lost him, but I catch up with LaMelo later that day on the balcony, sipping a smoothie, enthralled by his own bliss. LaMelo is almost two hours late for our meeting\u2014but then, this is the wunderkind Borrego lovingly describes as a \u201cspirit of curiosity.\u201d Of course LaMelo is late. He has more important shit to do than this.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s the life of a busy man, ya feeeeeel me?!\u201d he says with a chuckle, kicking his feet up, getting relaxed. \u201cI ain’t gon’ lie, I was definitely late,\u201d he says. And then he offers yet another LaMelo mantra: \u201cBut when a n-gga finally get here? That shit be fireworks.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

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