The Charlotte Hornets are at a very interesting crossroads now. They clearly want to prioritize the future, but the present is a little murky. The Mark Williams trade, or lack thereof, has presented a lot of the murk, but so has LaMelo Ball, at least in the eyes of Bobby Marks.

The NBA reporter with ESPN discussed what the Hornets’ approach should be in the draft and free agency, but that comes with a major question. Do the Hornets, who have a brand new coach and GM and ownership group now, want to keep Ball? He was drafted and then extended by the previous regime.

“When Ball signed a five-year, $204 million extension in 2023, the intention was that he would be the face of the franchise. But that new contract was under the previous ownership and management group,” Marks said via ESPN. “Now with a full year to evaluate, general manager Jeff Peterson will need to decide if Ball is a foundational player or someone they should explore moving for significant draft compensation and players. Ball has played like an All-Star but is on pace to appear in fewer than 50 games for a third straight season.”

Marks also noted that Charlotte will enter the offseason far under the luxury tax and will be positioned well to act as facilitators for other teams looking to shed contracts. That may impact their decision-making with Ball. If they move him and take back bad contracts, they’d probably end up with a massive haul of draft picks.

Since Jeff Peterson wasn’t the one who drafted him or even offered his extension, it’s unclear what the front office’s opinion of Ball really is. Is he a cornerstone piece they’re happy to have around, or is he a costly, injury-prone asset they need to move off of? Only time will tell.

This is something NBA reporter Jeremy Woo also noted. The Hornets’ willingness to move off of Mark Williams, a talented young player with injury issues, might signal how they truly feel about Ball, who is the same age albeit with more NBA experience so far.

“Charlotte’s willingness to trade away Williams, a quality lob threat who fit well with LaMelo Ball, might have signaled a more patient approach with the roster. With that trade having fallen apart, we’ll learn more about Charlotte’s timeline in the offseason,” Woo said. “Some lottery luck could alter the trajectory of the franchise. The Hornets could conceivably opt to remake the team around a top talent such as Flagg or Harper and Brandon Miller, then explore moving Ball for future value.”

The lottery could change a lot because the Hornets could possibly start building around year-three Brandon Miller and rookie Cooper Flagg if they win it instead of year-three Miller and year-five Ball.

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Is it time to be concerned about LaMelo Ball’s future?