Category: LaMelo Ball

Illawarra Hawks sign forward Darington Hobson as new import player

The Illawarra Hawks announced on Thursday the signing of forward Darington Hobson to a deal for the remainder of the 2019-20 season.

The Illawarra Hawks announced on Thursday the signing of forward Darington Hobson to a deal for the remainder of the 2019-20 season.

The Illawarra Hawks are excited to announce the recruitment of versatile swingman Darington Hobson to the ranks.

The former New Mexico Lobos star and NBA Milwaukee Bucks draftee has signed with the club for the remainder of the 2019/20 NBL Season.

Hobson, a 32-year old former New Mexico standout, joins the Hawks after spending last season with Fiat Torino in Italy. In 22 games, Hobson averaged 12.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists on 46.1 percent shooting from the field. Most important to the Hawks, though, is that Hobson shot 38.2 percent from three last season.

After being drafted with the 37th pick by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2010, Hobson spent four years in the G League after making only five appearances in the NBA, all coming in the 2011-12 season.

Hobson eventually left the G League and made stops in Brazil, China, Argentina, Greece and the Dominican Republic before playing in Italy. Hobson will likely immediately step into the starting lineup for Illawarra once acclimated.

The signing of Hobson comes after a report that the league was pressuring Illawarra to sign a player. The franchise went five weeks without replacing Aaron Brooks on the roster after the guard suffered an Achilles injury. Currently, the Hawks are at the bottom of the NBL standings at 3-9.

NBL executive on LaMelo Ball: ‘I don’t see any way he doesn’t go No. 1’

An NBL executive recently stated that LaMelo Ball should be a lock for the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.

While multiple anonymous reports from NBA executives and scouts have come out in recent weeks and months about LaMelo Ball’s potential in the NBA, few have come out from those with more first-hand experience of seeing Ball in action.

A recent piece from Yahoo Sports’ Krysten Peek saw an executive for the National Basketball League (NBL) speak highly of Ball’s future.

“I don’t see any way where LaMelo doesn’t go No. 1. He sees the floor better than anyone, and his passing and shooting is like nothing I’ve seen before.”

Recently, one NBA executive stated that a team would be “crazy” to draft Ball with the top pick. Other executives have questioned his work ethic or wondered how much he’ll focus on the NBA. But that hasn’t stopped Ball’s rise to the top of draft boards.

Ball’s rise has been made easier with many of his NCAA counterparts not yet hitting their strides. James Wiseman won’t play until the start of 2020 and while Anthony Edwards has certainly produced at times this year, he hasn’t caught the national (or even international) eyes that Ball has.

Whether he’s taken with the top pick or not, Ball has solidified his spot atop the draft boards and will be one of the first names called next June, a far cry from his second-round projection last year.

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NBL pressuring Illawarra Hawks to add import player to help LaMelo Ball

With the Illawarra Hawks floundering near the bottom of the National Basketball League (NBL) table, the league itself has reportedly begun putting pressure on the Hawks. In a new report on Wednesday, the NBL is said to be pressuring the team to add another import player to lessen the workload on star LaMelo Ball.

With the Illawarra Hawks floundering near the bottom of the National Basketball League (NBL) table, the league itself has reportedly begun putting pressure on the Hawks. In a report from the Illawarra Mercury on Wednesday, the NBL is said to be pressuring the team to add another import player to lessen the workload on star LaMelo Ball.

The Hawks have stalled on a replacement for NBA veteran Aaron Brooks for more than five weeks, amid speculation about the Hawks business structure and whether owner Simon Stratford will remain at the club.

It is understood the NBL is monitoring the situation.

In the immediate aftermath of Aaron Brooks’ injury, the Hawks released a behind-the-scenes video that showcased some of the potential targets the team was focusing on, highlighted by current G League players Jerian Grant and Tyler Ulis. However, after that initial video, the team has hardly been linked to another player.

The league’s interest in the matter runs deeper than it may appear on the surface. As noted in the piece, Ball’s Next Stars contract is paid by the league, giving them a financial incentive to get involved in the matter.

However, there are concerns about the 18-year-old’s workloads and time on court, leading the NBL – who pay his contract through the Next Stars program – to open discussions with the Hawks about fast-tracking a signing to bolster the squad.

A host of names specific to the NBL were mentioned in the piece as potential signings, though none of them moved the needle for non-NBL fans like the aforementioned names might. However, considering every league has already begun, signing a player that would be a big name is likely out of the equation.

Ball’s minutes have steadily increased in recent weeks since Brooks’ injury, including a season-high 40 minutes in an overtime win over Cairns.

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LaMelo Ball vows to play through entire NBL season

LaMelo Ball doesn’t plan on ending his NBL career early to prepare for the 2020 NBA Draft.

Earlier this season, Brian Windhorst of ESPN reported that NBA teams were flocking to Wollongong, Australia to watch LaMelo Ball play due to fear that the 18-year-old would end his season with the Illawarra Hawks early to avoid getting injured before the 2020 NBA Draft.

Those concerns were legitimate, especially considering how poorly the Illawarra Hawks have played this past season, but it seems they were premature. In an interview with Krysten Peek of Yahoo Sports, Ball said that he plans to finish the season in the NBL with the Hawks:

Contrary to some rumors, LaMelo told Yahoo Sports he is staying in Australia for the entire season despite his team’s last-place record of 3-9. “I don’t know where that rumor came from, but when I decided to come play over here, I committed to the whole season. I’m not leaving early,” he told Yahoo Sports.
That means Ball won’t return to the United States to prepare for the NBA Draft until after Feb. 14, when the Hawks will play their final game of the 20-round NBL season. By then, he’ll have a pretty good idea of where he’s going to go in the draft, barring an incredible NCAA tournament run by one of the top-five prospects.
Ball is currently projected to go No. 1 overall by ESPN.
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Knicks select LaMelo Ball with No. 1 pick in latest mock draft by ESPN

If the NBA season ended today, the New York Knicks would be in prime position to draft their point guard of the future in LaMelo Ball.

The NCAA basketball season is in full swing and despite a pair of strong outings for Anthony Edwards and Cole Anthony, LaMelo Ball’s draft stock hasn’t moved down the draft boards. In fact, in ESPN’s latest 2020 NBA mock draft has Ball going ahead of Edwards, Anthony and, well, everyone.

That’s right, ESPN NBA draft analysts Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz came together and agreed that if the draft were today, they would take Ball with the No. 1 overall selection. The irony is that while Ball has moved up two slots since the last mock draft Givony and Schmitz did in November, he’s still projected to go to the New York Knicks, who hold the worst record in the NBA with four wins and 17 losses.

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The NBA recently changed the draft lottery format so that the worst team in the league isn’t rewarded with the best odds for the No. 1 pick, but at the rate the Knicks are losing right now, they have as good of a shot as anyone to land the 18-year-old guard. And if there’s anything the Knicks need, it’s a playmaking guard to feed the flurry of forwards they have on their roster.

If the season ended today, the Golden State Warriors and Atlanta Hawks would also have a 14% chance of winning the NBA Draft lottery and drafting Ball with the No. 1 overall pick. However, because they already have their franchise point guards in Stephen Curry and Trae Young, respectively, it’s likely they’d try to trade down.

It might early in the season for draft talk, but with bad the Hawks, Warriors and Knicks are playing, we could be talking about the same teams when the draft rolls around in June.

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NBA executive says teams would be ‘crazy’ to take LaMelo Ball with No. 1 pick

Not everyone is sold on LaMelo Ball being the No. 1 prospect in the 2020 NBA Draft.

Coming fresh off of his second career triple-double, LaMelo Ball is expected by many to be the best prospect in the 2020 NBA Draft, even with Anthony Edwards and Cole Anthony living up to the hype in the college circuit. Not everyone is sold on Ball, though.

Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated recently spoke to an NBA executive who doesn’t think Ball is worthy of the No. 1 overall pick because of his poor shooting percentages in the NBL:

While it’s clear Ball will end up an early selection in a relatively thin lottery, there are echoes of skepticism tied to his candidacy at No. 1. “[The No. 1 pick] shooting sub-40% from the field and sub-30% from three? That’s crazy,” one Western Conference executive emphasized.

It’s true that Ball has struggled from the field this season. Through 12 regular season with  the Illawarra Hawks, Ball has averaged 17 points per game on 37.5% shooting from the field, including 25% from 3-point range on 6.7 attempts per game, according to Basketball Reference. However, Ball’s shooting percentages aren’t much worse than Edwards’ or Anthony’s, and he’s playing against players that are much more skilled and physically mature than the talent Edwards and Anthony are facing in the NCAA.

That being said, Ball’s shot selection has played a big role in his shooting percentages being as low as they are and while teams will surely appreciate Ball’s ability to score in a variety of ways, they’ll have reason to question whether or not Ball knows when to take those shots.

The 2020 NBA Draft is still several months away, so hopefully Ball’s shooting percentages level out before then. Otherwise, it’s not hard to imagine Edwards and Anthony leapfrogging him on draft boards in spite of the other things Ball brings to the table.

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NBL CEO says LaMelo Ball has had biggest ever impact on league

NBL CEO Jeremy Loeliger spoke recently on LaMelo Ball’s enormous impact on the league in his one year with Illawarra.

LaMelo Ball’s impact on and off the court this season with the National Basketball League (NBL) has been evident from the moment he stepped foot in Australia. On top of breaking attendance and viewership records, Ball is breaking records on the court, particularly in recent weeks.

Ball has brought the league to a mainstream audience, a fact not lost on the upper brass within the league. In a recent interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, NBL CEO Jeremy Loeliger not only had his highest praise yet for Ball.

“LaMelo Ball has had the biggest impact on this league that any player has ever had. We never had a North American viewership until this season, we were available there and some people were tuning in but you couldn’t talk about a consistent audience. We’ve had over 10 million views of the highlights of his triple-double.”

Ball’s growing list of accomplishments includes being apart of the most-attended and most-watched game against the New Zealand Breakers in the first meeting with R.J. Hampton. The game drew an attendance of 17.516 and a television viewership of over two million people.

He has parlayed that off-court success into on-court success with consecutive triple-doubles for Illawarra. That has led to him moving to the top spot in the DraftExpress’ latest 2020 NBA Draft big board.

LaMelo Ball moves to top spot of DraftExpress 2020 NBA Draft board

LaMelo Ball has continued to ascend the 2020 NBA Draft boards and DraftExpress placed him atop their latest big board.

After high praise during the first months of the season, DraftExpress unveiled its latest 2020 NBA Draft big board with LaMelo Ball atop for the first time. Ball has steadily risen from a late second-round pick last year to top pick this year.

DraftExpress’ current projection for Ball is as a franchise point guard. While Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz discussed who should be the top pick with a wide open competition that includes James Wiseman of Memphis and Anthony Edwards of Georgia, the consensus opinion is Ball, at least for now.

While delivering lengthy glowing reports in the past, DraftExpress offered a more brief version of his strengths in the latest big board.

– Has elite size for a point guard at 6-foot-7. Controls the game from his unique vantage point with impressive creativity, flair, poise and instincts operating off a live dribble. Gifted ball handler who plays at different speeds and can make every pass with either hand, especially operating out of pick-and-roll. Throws 90-foot outlets, makes magical touch passes.
– Has a chance to be an adequate defender eventually due to his combination of terrific size, quick feet and instincts, particularly when he’s playing with energy. Already has some impressive moments at times rotating for steals and contesting shots around the basket. Excellent rebounder for a guard.
– Won’t turn 19 until well after the draft. Will be one of the youngest players picked in the first round. Might still be growing. Frame should continue to evolve into his 20s.

Much of Ball’s positives focus on his potential due to his size and youth. He has a high IQ, the length to be a lead guard and the youth to still grow into his body as it continues to grow.

The negatives, meanwhile, deal with some of his inconsistencies on the offensive end.

– Has struggled to score efficiently throughout his career. Currently shooting 44% from 2-point range and 18% from 3. Shoots jumpers with unorthodox mechanics, including a two-handed release while kicking his legs out. The touch he shows on floaters and career 84% free throw percentage leaves room for optimism, but his inability to buy a basket at times this season has been discouraging.
– Lacks a degree of high-end explosiveness creating offense from a standstill and beating opponents off the dribble. Doesn’t have the strength to finish what he does create around the basket. Relies on a lot of tough floaters and other high degree of difficulty attempts inside the arc. Might not ever be a guy who goes and gets you a bucket in a pinch. Much more effective when he can move the defense and create for others.
– Indifferent defender for much of his career. Still reverts back to that frequently, especially off the ball, where he falls asleep regularly. Struggles to get over screens due to his lack of strength. Has been maligned at times for his work ethic and level of focus on and off the floor.

Ball will certainly have lots of questions about his game as he comes into the 2020 NBA Draft. But he’s also coming into his own in Australia with Illawarra and answering many of those questions as the season continues.

He’s closed the gap at the top of the NBA Draft and now could put some distance between himself and the rest of the field if he continues his strong play.

LaMelo Ball notches back-to-back triple-doubles, Hawks fall to Breakers

LaMelo Ball recorded his second-consecutive triple-double on Saturday but Illawarra could not overcome a slow first half despite a lively second-half rally, falling to the New Zealand Breakers 91-78.

LaMelo Ball recorded his second-consecutive triple-double on Saturday but Illawarra could not overcome a slow first half despite a lively second-half rally, falling to the New Zealand Breakers 91-78.

Ball wasn’t nearly as efficient in his second consecutive triple-double but he was imperative in Illawarra’s second-half rally. The Hawks slowly began chipping away at the huge deficit in the third quarter and cut the margin to single digits in the fourth period.

However, down six points in the latter stages of the quarter, Ball missed a pair of free throws after a flagrant foul and the Hawks came up empty on the ensuing possession before Sek Henry buried a three-pointer to put distance between the two sides again.

From there, Illawarra never could find its footing back in the game as the visiting Hawks stumbled down the stretch. While Ball notched his triple-double late in the contest, his 23 points on the night came on 28 shots as he finished just 10-for-28 from the field. Most notably, Ball’s three-point shooting, which had improved in recent weeks, regressed dramatically on the night as he finished 1-for-11.

But Ball pulled down 12 rebounds, handed out 10 assists and had a big role in pulling the Hawks back into the game late. His highlight of the night came on a coast-to-coast play that started with a rebound and ended with a two-handed dunk.

The New Zealand lead peaked at 21 points early in the third quarter at 63-42. But a 14-3 run cut the advantage to just 10 points, a margin that would carry to the end of the third.

A three-pointer from Tim Coenraad after a Ball rebound cut the lead all the way down to 71-69, the closest the Hawks would get in the fourth quarter.

Ball became the first player in the 40-minute era of NBL’s history to record consecutive triple-doubles. It’s the fourth back-to-back triple-double in league history.

Report: NBA teams question LaMelo Ball’s work ethic, reluctant to hand keys to franchise over

While LaMelo Ball has found success carrying a franchise in the NBL this season, NBA teams are reportedly still holding reservations.

On the court, LaMelo Ball has proven that he is arguably the most talented prospect in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft. His talent has been on full display in recent weeks for Illawarra, capped off with his triple-double against the Taipans last week.

An area in which there are still many questions, though, comes off the court. While the attachment to his father, LaVar, will always hang over him, it’s not the only area scouts and general managers have hesitations. In a piece on Sunday in which DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz discussed which prospect should top the 2020 NBA Draft big board, Givony talked about NBA teams being uncertain about whether they can trust Ball to lead the franchise.

However, I believe that if the draft were held today, (Ball) probably would not be the No. 1 pick. Of course, that will heavily depend on the team that ends up winning the May lottery. But both Schmitz and I have just received a significant amount of blowback from NBA teams who say that they simply don’t trust Ball enough to hand him the keys to their franchise. They worry about what all the attention around him will do to their team culture, how strong his work ethic is and whether his father, LaVar, could become a distraction.

The idea that Ball wouldn’t be able to lead an NBA franchise feels rather unfounded. After a bit of a learning curve, Illawarra handed the keys to its franchise in the wake of Aaron Brooks’ season-ending Achilles injury.

The results have been wholly positive for the Hawks. Ball has helped revitalize the team and has powered the team to a pair of wins over Cairns. While the NBL certainly isn’t the NBA, it is a blueprint for how putting Ball in a position to succeed can lead to a bright future for a franchise.

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