Hornets place LaMelo Ball, three others in health and safety protocols

The Charlotte Hornets placed LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier, Mason Plumlee and Jalen McDaniels in the NBA's health and safety protocols Saturday morning, the team announced. The Hornets didn't announce if positive COVID-19 tests were the reason for the designations.

Ball is the Hornets' leading scorer with 20 points per game, and Rozier isn't far behind with an average of 17.7 points. Plumlee has been Charlotte's starting center, but he has missed the last four games due to a calf injury.

It's unclear for now how long any of the four players will be out of action, but it's likely the Hornets will be severely undermanned for a Sunday game against the Atlanta Hawks and potentially in back-to-back games against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday and Wednesday too.

The Hornets are already on a slide after losing three consecutive games last week. Prior to the losing streak, Charlotte won eight of nine games during a stretch in November. The recent losses dropped Charlotte to 13-11 on the year and into seventh place in the Eastern Conference.