Charlotte Hornets’ LaMelo Ball (1) laughs with head coach Charles Lee after Charlotte’s practice at the Michael W. Krzyzewski Center at Duke University in Durham, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. Ethan Hyman ehyman@newsobserver.com
Holding a container of food while walking out of Spectrum Center provided some inadvertent, subtle symbolism for Miles Bridges.
After all, the Charlotte Hornets’ forward is hungry to get back on the court for game action, something that could soon be on the horizon after he participated in team activities during practice on Wednesday for the first time in nearly three weeks.
“It’s good,” Bridges told The Observer. “You know I hate sitting out. I’m progressing toward the right way. That’s what I’m trying to get to. I’m getting better every day.”
Which has to be soothing music to Charles Lee’s ears.
Navigating the Hornets’ rash of injuries created a challenge for the first-year coach, forcing him to constantly mix-and-match lineups. It began with Mark Williams coming up gimpy with a foot issue just before training camp and continued with Nick Richards (shoulder), Tre Mann (back), Bridges (knee), LaMelo Ball (calf), Tidjane Salaun (ankle) and Grant Wiliams, who just had successful surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn medial and lateral meniscus in his right knee.
Mark Williams and Richards have returned, bolstering the Hornets’ interior even though Williams’ minutes are being restricted because they’re playing it cautious since the big man hadn’t played for nearly a full calendar year. Mann, who’s missed the past nine games and won’t play in Friday night’s matchup in Chicago, is expected to be re-evaluated within the next few days, keeping in tune with the Hornets’ initial timeline.
Salaün, following a two-game absence, proclaimed himself ready to go.
“I’m back,” he told The Observer.
Bridges and Ball are also apparently inching closer, with each reaching the point in their return-to-play program where they are ramping up activity levels during full team drills and scrimmaging.
Precisely when they will be in the rotation again is unclear because that can’t be fully determined until clearing certain hurdles.
“It’s a balance of what is too much work, what is not enough work to be able to identify if they are ready for game action,” Lee said. “But I think our performance staff and our coaching staff do a really good job of developing the most thoughtful plans they can. And every injury has different boxes you have to check off.
“Miles, obviously, going through what he has to go through, it’s less of a strain or something like that. So, his criteria is different than what Melo’s is for the injury that he has. I think our whole staff is being super mindful.”
For someone like Ball, whose game relies so much on acceleration, hesitation and change of direction, there are a few more things to circle on his checklist. Particularly conditioning and comfort, which is key for the star guard.
“You’ve got to be able to see, No, 1 how does his body respond to trying to run, especially full speed motions?” Lee said. “And then after that, it’s how do we see him do some cutting now within the full speed running, So, there’s a progression.”
Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges (0) during pregame warmups against the Milwaukee Bucks at Spectrum Center. Jim Dedmon USA TODAY NETWORK
Whenever Ball and Bridges shed their street clothes for uniforms, it should provide a mental lift if nothing else. Eight of the Hornets’ top players in Lee’s rotation have missed at least one game due to an aching ailment.
In scanning the NBA landscape, though, the Hornets aren’t alone. But they’re hoping their health fortunes are finally slowly turning in the right direction.
“You see different teams dealing with injuries now, so I’m kind of happy that we’ve got that out the way — except for Grant missing the whole year,” Bridges said. “But just guys being able to come back now, it’s the right time — at the meat of the season. So, I feel like we’ll be good.”
That’s also how Bridges describes his current state.
“I tried to come back too early and I re-aggravated it,” he said. “But I feel fine now and the training staff played it safe. But the good thing about sitting out for me is just observing the game from a different standpoint and seeing how the little things matter, different stuff.
“Just defense, communication. Things we can be getting better at on offense, like with our pace and all that type of stuff. So, just seeing that.”
Something else he’d enjoy witnessing: climbing up in the standings, giving the Hornets a chance to reach one of their preseason goals. And despite all of the early-season injuries and subsequent hiccups, Bridges still believes the biggest one can still be accomplished.
As in ending the NBA’s longest playoff drought, which is creeping toward a decade.
“Yeah for sure,” Bridges said. “We get on a winning streak, we are right back in the race. That’s our main focus. Just winning games, taking one game at a time.”
The Charlotte Observer
Roderick Boone joined the Observer in September 2021 to cover the Charlotte Hornets and NBA. In his more than two decades of writing about the world of sports, he’s chronicled everything from high school rodeo to a major league baseball no-hitter to the Super Bowl to the Finals. The Long Island native has deep North Carolina roots and enjoys watching “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” endlessly.