Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball emerged as the game’s hero in Tuesday night’s playoff victory against Miami, but Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra believes Ball should have been thrown out of the contest during the first half for a dangerous play.
During the early minutes of the second quarter, Ball caused Heat All-Star Bam Adebayo to trip by grabbing his left ankle, sending Adebayo crashing hard to the court beneath the basket. The fall resulted in a back injury that forced Adebayo to miss the rest of Charlotte’s thrilling 127-126 overtime win at home.
As Adebayo remained on the ground near the baseline, the game continued with both teams scoring baskets. Officials finally halted play with Charlotte leading 30-26 and 10:58 remaining in the quarter. Adebayo managed to get up and walked gingerly to the locker room for medical assessment.
Following the game, Spoelstra expressed his frustration with the incident. “I didn’t see it (when it happened), but I don’t think it’s cute. I don’t think it’s funny. I think it’s a stupid play. It’s a dangerous play. Obviously, our best player was out,” Spoelstra stated.
“I’m not making an excuse. The Hornets played great and they made those plays down the stretch. We had our opportunities to win. That’s a shame. You should be penalized for that. I don’t think that belongs in the game — tripping guys, shenanigans,” he continued.
Official Zach Zarba explained to reporters after the game that the incident couldn’t be reviewed since play had resumed following the occurrence.
Ball offered an apology for his actions, saying, “I apologize on that one. I got hit in the head (on the preceding action) and didn’t really know where I was. But I’m going to check on him, see if he’s OK and everything.”
Despite the controversy, Ball finished with 30 points and delivered the decisive basket with just 4.7 seconds remaining in overtime to secure the victory.
Before his injury, Adebayo had contributed six points and three rebounds. The veteran center, now in his ninth season, posted impressive regular season averages of 20.1 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, with his rebounding numbers ranking eighth league-wide.
