The Charlotte Hornets avoided the worst. The NBA has officially handed down its judgment on one of the most polarizing sequences of the 2026 postseason. The Hornets will have their star guard in the playoffs but for a hefty sum. Despite their stroke of good luck, the NBA might not come out looking good from this. The league acknowledged that LaMelo Ball’s action that resulted in Bam Adebayo’s injury was unnecessary. It served him consequences for it. It just wasn’t what everyone wanted.
Following a league-wide outcry and a scathing review of the tape, LaMelo Ball has been hit with a double-whammy of five-figure fines totaling $60,000, Shams Charania confirmed. A $35,000 is for his trip of Adebayo. The NBA further upgrades the action to a Flagrant, adding another $25,000 fine for cursing postgame.
While upgraded to a flagrant foul, the NBA won’t be giving him a suspension. Which was what Erik Spoelstra and most of the NBA community was looking for.
“He should be penalized for that. I don’t think that belongs in the game, tripping guys. Somebody has got to see that. He should have been thrown out of the game for that,” the Miami head coach said in an extended rant after the game. He hasn’t responded on this punishment yet.
The decision clears the question of LaMelo Ball’s availability for the Play-In finale against the Orlando Magic on April 17. However, it leaves the Miami Heat frustrated with what they likely perceive is a slap on the wrist after ending their All-Star’s season.
LaMelo Ball expressed remorse for the incident
During the Play-In matchup between the Hornets and Miami Heat, a sequence of events in the second quarter outraged most who were watching. LaMelo fell on his back and during that, his hand grabbed Adebayo’s ankle, tripping him to the floor. The game proceeded to the other end and no call was made in the moment.
However, Bam was left in significant pain and had to be helped back to the locker room. He was ruled out for the rest of the game.
Without their defensive stopper, the Heat staggered. LaMelo, who was not ejected, remained through overtime and hit the game-winning shot with less than five seconds on the clock. The Heat ended up eliminated in a 127-126 loss due to the non-call in the first half.
After the game, LaMelo Ball took a remorseful stance while explaining he was disoriented. “I apologize on that one,” Ball told reporters. “I got hit in the head, didn’t really know where I was, but I’mma check on him and see if he’s okay and everything.”
Regardless of his apology and explanation, South Beach was out for blood. The officiating crew deferred it to the NBA to assess the matter.
The league reportedly interviewed Ball about the sequence of events. As per Charania, the league was looking into a lighter punishment for the guard.
“My understanding is the NBA has already made contact with the Heat and the Hornets about this matter. Over the next several hours, they’re going to eventually interview LaMelo Ball himself and other related parties,” said Charania. And people involved around this situation and the investigations so far tell me certainly, there’s a chance this gets upgraded to a flagrant one or flagrant two with a foul. There is doubt about whether this really rises to the level of a suspension,” he concluded.
As Charania said, the lack of suspension comes as a massive relief for a Hornets squad that is not built to survive without Ball. By upgrading the trip to a Flagrant 2 (retroactively), the NBA is acknowledging that the contact was “egregious” and merited an ejection at the time, yet they ultimately determined it did not meet the threshold for a multi-game ban.
