Charlotte Hornets DVOA, Stats, & NBA Rankings

Charlotte Hornets forward Grant Williams (knee) is progressing well and "hitting milestones." The 26-year-old saw his 2024-25 campaign come to an end on Nov. 23, when he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks. Before the injury, Williams averaged 10.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals over 29.9 minutes per game. Williams showed that he can make a fantasy impact as a member of the Hornets, but it remains to be seen whether he will reach similar performance levels next season. After undergoing surgery in December, Williams was ruled out for 9-12 months, meaning he might not return to action before 2026.

Charlotte Hornets point guard LaMelo Ball will be locked into the weight room in the offseason if head coach Charles Lee has his way. "He's got to get stronger," Lee said about Ball Monday following the team's exit interviews. "Teams are trying to deny him, trying to be physical, and you can see early in the year when teams did it, it definitely bothered him," Lee said. "As he got used to it, he got a lot more comfortable, so it's going to start with his body. He's got to get stronger and more conditioned to be able to play both sides of the ball and sustain efforts. ... When you're one of the best players in the league, you have to be ready for physicality. In order to combat that, you have to be stronger." Building extra muscle on his 6-foot-7, 190-pound frame could also enable Ball to spend more time on the court. Over the past three seasons, he has played in just 105 games, causing frustration for fantasy managers.

Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams (foot) won't play on Wednesday against the Raptors. He logged 31 minutes in Tuesday's loss to the Grizzlies. But, as has been the case, Williams will sit this one out to rest his ailing left foot. Without Williams in the mix, Jusuf Nurkic, who had eight points, eight rebounds, and one block in his last start, should handle things in the middle. Nurkic should also see a bump in production, considering Miles Bridges (hip) is also ruled out.