LaMelo Ball DROPS in Top 100 Rankings | Hornets WORST American Sports Franchise? | Draft Hits and Misses

The Charlotte Hornets' offseason is officially underway, and the vibes are...complicated. In this episode of Locked On Hornets, we react to The Ringer’s latest Top 100 NBA players list, where LaMelo Ball drops to 49th—a steep fall from his midseason high of 25. We break down Danny Chau’s brutally honest write-up on LaMelo, which praises his talent but questions whether he can ever rise above the “good stats, bad team” label. Is the franchise doing enough to support him—or are the injuries just too much? We also dive into our latest Locked On Network mock draft and reveal our pick for the Hornets at #4. What does the pick say about the team’s current trajectory, and why does the fanbase seem more cynical than ever? From draft strategy to past hits and misses, we reflect on years of Hornets scouting and how the front office’s hesitancy has paralyzed the franchise. We discuss a “Worst Franchise in America Sports” YouTube video making the rounds—and why the Hornets can’t even be recognized for being the worst. Plus, Doug revisits his LaMelo Ball scouting victory lap, Walker confesses his Ziaire Williams miss, and we go deep into Charlotte’s identity crisis. You don’t want to miss this brutally honest yet hopeful look at where the Hornets stand going into a critical summer. Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms… 🎧 https://linktr.ee/lockedonhornets Become an official member of the Locked On Hornets Sicko Brigade and get Hornets news, rumors and pictures of Byron Mullens sent directly to your phone via Subtext (14 Day Free Trial): https://joinsubtext.com/lockedonhornets Locked On NBA League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft, WNBA & More 🎧 https://linktr.ee/LockedOnNBA Get Doug's gamenotes, special articles and a podcast on Hornets history at the Every Hornets Boxscore substack: everyhornetsboxscore.com Get more Walker on Wes and Walker 12-3pm on WFNZ 92.7 FM Top 35 Hornets Nicknames of All-Time According to Doug Branson: https://hornets.substack.com/p/the-top-35-nicknames-in-hornets-franchise Top 35 Hornets of All-Time According to Walker Mehl: https://hornets.substack.com/p/the-top-35-players-in-hornets-history 📲 Follow Locked On Hornets on Twitter Locked On Hornets https://twitter.com/LockedOnHornets Walker Mehl https://twitter.com/WalkerMehl Doug Branson https://twitter.com/DougBransonLOH Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! OpenPhone Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get 20% off your first 6 months at www.openphone.com/lockedonnba Betterhelp This episode is sponsored by Betterhelp. Your well-being is worth it. Visit BetterHelp.com/lockedonnba today to get 10% off your first month. Monarch Money Take control of your finances with Monarch Money. Use code LOCKEDONNBA at monarchmoney.com for 50% off your first year FanDuel Right now, new customers can get TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS in BONUS BETS when your first FIVE DOLLAR BET WINS! Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started. Bet with FanDuel—Official Partner of the NBA. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.