Exclusive: Charlotte Hornets sign in three top five-star players in a blockbuster deal.
The three new hires to the basketball management staff were revealed by the Charlotte Hornets. They are a vice president of basketball operations and strategy, a vice president of basketball insights and analysis, and an assistant general manager.
Dotun Akinwale, who came from the Atlanta Hawks, where he played a number of front office responsibilities, is the assistant general manager. During their individual tenures in Atlanta, he and Hornets General Manager Jeff Peterson would have had a good deal of similarities.
The vice president of basketball operations and strategy will be Ryan Gisrel. He was a player with the Brooklyn Nets, when he was employed by Peterson. After being elevated from his position as Director of Basketball Operations, he worked as their Executive Director of Basketball and Business Operations. He worked at the Shapiro Negotiations Institute before he became a professional basketball player. From what I understand, the institute teaches people how to negotiate.
After serving as the NBA’s Senior Director of Basketball Strategy and Analytics, Patrick Harrell has joined the Hornets. It appears that he played a significant role in the In-Season Tournament and 2020 Covid Bubble installation. It will be intriguing to see what this highly rated basketball nerd has to offer the company.
Young, promising players are the only ones hired, which is in line with the Hornets’ new strategy. The new ownership group has attempted to modernize the NBA by hiring only younger individuals with analytical and forward-thinking backgrounds. Hiring seasoned professionals who have been in the league for a long time is not the same approach as this. Though how all of this plays out is still to be seen, it’s difficult to not be enthusiastic about the strategy the Hornets are implementing to rebuild their team. It is brimming with expertise.
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LaMelo Ball is being sued for allegedly running a child’s foot over.
Charlotte, North Carolina — A lady has filed a civil lawsuit against LaMelo Ball and the Charlotte Hornets, claiming that the star guard struck her son with his car last fall outside Spectrum Center.
Tamaria McRae filed the lawsuit on Tuesday in Mecklenburg County Superior Court. According to the lawsuit, on October 7, during the team’s yearly Purple and Teal Day scrimmage, Ball drove her kid over and shattered his foot with his automobile. According to McRae, after 12-year-old Angell Joseph approached Ball to ask for an autograph, the star drove off, tripping over Joseph’s foot and sending him to the ground.
The family’s attorney, meron DeBrunCa, told WSOC that because Ball’s name and insurance company were missing from the police report, no claim was made to Ball’s insurance company to cover the child’s medical expenses. DeBrun stated that the family would have to sue Ball and the team without that knowledge.
The family is suing for compensatory damages exceeding $25,000 in addition to any further legal bills and court expenses.
The Hornets choose not to respond.
After Hornets games, security usually sets up barricades outside the loading dock area to keep fans and passersby away, especially if a car is departing. It’s not clear if that was the situation on the day that Ball is said to have had the encounter.
Ball had a dismal season, appearing in just 22 games as a result of ankle ailments. When his $200 million+ max rookie extension kicks in in 2024–25, he will be the team’s highest paid player. He hasn’t played in all of his games since the Hornets selected him third overall in 2020.
