sharpened a singular focus. Kupchak won’t compare
LaMelo to Kobe but notes a similar unf lappability on the
floor. “Whether it’s making a bad pass or two because
maybe he tries to stretch the limits of the pass, he’ll do it
a third time,” says Kupchak. “If he misses two or three
threes, and there’s two minutes left to the game, he’ll
take another one. He doesn’t get rattled, and he has great
confidence in his abilities.”
Borrego likens the process to what Popovich went
through with Argentine guard Manu Ginóbili: The coach
walked the fine line between holding Ginóbili accountable
for mistakes and allowing him to f lex his creativity. “Both
Melo and Manu are fearless,” says Borrego. “The challenge
is fitting that fearless spirit within a system.” Charlotte
has veterans like forward Gordon Hayward and guard
Terry Rozier, but Borrego tells Ball: You are the general. You
have to control the gym. When they watch film together,
it’s usually clips of split-second decisions Ball makes.
“I say to him all the time, his basketball IQ is going to
continue to grow,” says Borrego. “He has great feel, great
instinct. Now it’s about the IQ growth in understanding
the league and personnel, not only of his teammates but
of who we’re playing, who we want to attack.”
Borrego also sees a curiosity in Ball similar to what
helped drive Ginóbili. Ball is the most vocal player in
film sessions, chiming in on nearly every play. “When
he first came in, I thought he’d be more quiet, reserved,
disengaged,” says Borrego. “He’s been completely opposite.
He’s more engaged, more curious, more vibrant than I
could have ever imagined.”
Ask Ball about the comparisons to former greats and
you are once again reminded: He’s 20. He grew up in the
shadow of Bryant but can’t pinpoint similarities in their
games. “I don’t really compare myself to anybody,” says
Ball. He was a toddler when Ginóbili started winning
championships and admits he has not watched much
tape of him: “I heard he was cold, though.”
After scooping out the last few bits of Cap’n Crunch
from his frosty treat, Ball slides off a stool and disap-
pears down the alley. It’s back to the gym to get up a
few more shots. Then back home for a few hours in front
of the Xbox.
Occasionally, Bridges says, he will try to lure his
teammate out. But more often Ball entices Bridges into
a game of NBA2K or Mortal Kombat or a night spin-
ning through NBA League Pass. “You would think with
[7.5 million] Instagram followers he’d be all over the place,”
says Bridges. “But he just likes to be at home.”
For someone so comfortable in his own skin, it’s not
surprising Ball prefers his own avatar, too. “He’s always
Charlotte,” says Bridges of their NBA2K matchups. “He’s
got to score 50 with himself.” And why not? It’s fun to
be LaMelo Ball.
THE WINNER OF THE
2021 Indianapolis 500
ticks all the boxes for a
breakout star. He spent
the last three seasons
driving in the less-
glamorous sportscar
circuit without a full-time
IndyCar job; then last
spring he took a ride at
the Brickyard with a team
that had never won a race.
A 30-to-1 shot, he then
outdueled the season’seventual champ to win.
However, there’s
one thing keeping
Hélio Castroneves from
being our Breakout of
the Year: He’s 46 years
old, and the victory at
the Brickyard was his
fourth, tying him for the
most ever. How about
Re-Breakout of the Year?
Castroneves won his
first two 500s in 2001
and ’02, then added a
third seven years later—
all for Roger Penske.
He came dangerously
close to joining the four-
time club in ’14, losing
by 0.06 seconds, and
was runner-up again in
’17. After that season
Penske told Castroneves
he wanted to move him
to his sportscar teamBREAKOUT OF THE YEAR
BACK HOMEAGAIN,
IN INDIANA
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Q SI.COM 74ST
ACY (^) R
EV
ER
E/G
ET
TY
(^) IM
AG
ES