2020 NBA Draft: Handing out grades to every team in the lottery

3. Charlotte Hornets, LaMelo Ball

Grade: A+ 

Just before the draft, The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor reported that the Charlotte Hornets were interested in trading up with the Wolves with a deal based around swapping picks and throwing in a PJ Washington or Miles Bridges.

Luckily for the Hornets, they didn’t make the trade, they get to keep their prospect that they would’ve had to part with, drafted their guy with the highest ceiling in LaMelo and they get to pay him less since he was the third pick, not the first.

LaMelo gives this team a potential superstar of the future to build around and since they’re not expecting to win much in the coming years, they can let LaMelo make all the mistakes he wants, handle the ball as often as possible and give him all the opportunity to grow into the player he can become.

There’s also a world in which everything crashes and burns and one of the players below him turns into a really nice role player, wing defender, or whatever, but right now, there’s a non-zero percent chance LaMelo becomes the best point guard in the league, it’s hard to say that about anyone else in the league, so it’s worth the risk.