James Borrego on LaMelo Ball’s first day of training camp: ‘He’s a sponge. He wants to get better’
After a nine-month layoff, one could hardly blame Hornets head coach James Borrego for being excited on the opening day of training camp. On top of being back on the court, Borrego had a top draft pick – LaMelo Ball – and a marquee free agent signing – Gordon Hayward – to integrate into the team’s system.
But the excitement, which he said hit him on Friday morning as he wrote out his practice plan, has been matched by some forced patience as he realizes the fine line he has to walk in an abbreviated preseason.
“It’s one day at a time,” he said following the team’s first 5-on-5 workout of the season. “We’re trying to jam in a lot right now. But I’m trying to be patient. The group that’s coming back from last year has a pulse on what we’re trying to do. It’s incorporating the new guys, the rookies.
“And a big part is gonna be LaMelo and Gordon, introducing them to our program. But they’re two very high IQ basketball players. Even today, they pick things up extremely quickly.”
Borrego paired his two new additions to the roster, Hayward and Ball, for much. The former’s recognition of the Hornets system after years of playing against them and being in the NBA helped him acclimate quickly on Friday.
As for LaMelo?
“LaMelo was a joy out there today,” Borrego said. “I mean, he’s a sponge, he wants to get better. He’s got a high basketball IQ.”
The always brief Ball expressed a joy to be back on the court after his own lengthy layoff that has lasted over a calendar year.
“First day of practice was cool,” Ball said. “I mean, I love the vibe. Everybody around here is cool. I really loved it. You know, I love guys, love being here, love playing basketball.”
For now, the Hornets are fully healthy with the exception of Malik Monk, who tested positive for COVID-19 but was asymptomatic according to Borrego. The challenge is not to keep the team healthy while keeping up with an abbreviated preseason and training camp.
“I think that the number one thing has to be health right now,” Borrego said. “It’s got to be our health. And that’s the virus, number one, and then their body. You know, there are two factors, there are two x-factors here at play. We haven’t been played in nine months and there’s this virus out there. We’ve got to be very aware of both because if our guys aren’t healthy, either because of the virus or because they’re getting injured, it’s going to set us back threefold, right?
“The biggest thing is being patient and taking it day by day, giving them as much information as they can handle, not doing too much, not doing too little,” he added. “And that’s just my gut feel on a day to day basis. I think Gordon’s gonna pick stuff up quicker than potentially LaMelo but Melo’s high basketball IQ, he’s gonna pick up the system fairly quickly.”
Hours after practice ended, the Hornets had a hard deadline placed on their preseason with the release of the first half of the regular season schedule. Nineteen days is all that will separate Friday’s opening practice and the first game of the season.
It’s not a timeline that lends itself to patience. But it’s a virtue Charlotte must have if they want to be competing for the postseason come next spring.
