
Moussa Diabaté allegedly said NBA teams are targeting the Charlotte Hornets after a zesty video showed him flirting with teammate LaMelo Ball.
The video sparked rumors that the 2 teammates are a romantic item off the court.
The clip went viral on social media after the Hornets defeated the Washington Wizards 119-115 on Jan. 24.
LaMelo, 24, hiked up his jersey as he apparently flirted with Moussa, also 24, after the game.
LaMelo & Moussa still playing after the buzzer ??? pic.twitter.com/dOy2E8OGJr
— Kyle Ingram (@SnapshotKyle) January 24, 2026
Now sources say Moussa has to prove his manhood to NBA players because NBA teams don’t respect the Hornets.
During the Hornets vs Detroit Pistons game on Monday, Moussa exploded in a rage after Pistons center Jalen Duren pushed him in the face and called him a gay slur, which sparked a bench-clearing brawl.
BENCHES CLEAR IN PISTONS-HORNETS ?
Moussa Diabate, Miles Bridges, Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart were all ejected following the altercation during Pistons-Hornets. pic.twitter.com/VeNSi6vEBR
— ESPN (@espn) February 10, 2026
The fight ended with four ejections and possible suspensions for Moussa, Jalen and other NBA players.
During a post-interview, Moussa admitted he overreacted. He said he was remorseful and apologized to the organization and the fans.
But sources say Moussa is upset that other NBA teams consider the Hornets as soft since that video of him and LaMelo went viral.
“I fouled him, got into each other’s face, which is fine, it’s basketball,” Moussa said after the incident. “It got completely different when he put his hand in my face, and I lost control of my emotions. When he put his hand in my face, I think that’s when I kind of lost control of it. Obviously, it shouldn’t have happened.”
When asked about the incident, Jalen said, “Just an overly competitive game, emotions flaring. At the end of the day, we would love to keep it basketball, but things happen.”
“It was just a hard foul. He didn’t go across your head. Taking exception to that is just soft.”@KenyonMartinSr says Moussa Diabaté is soft for losing his cool after a non-malicious foul. pic.twitter.com/MFrOrqgWNT
— Gil’s Arena (@GilsArenaShow) February 10, 2026





