NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — LaMelo Ball has never been more popular, and it’s not because the 6-foot-7 Charlotte star has the Hornets contending for a playoff spot.
Much of their hype is about its size. And Charlotte tries to take advantage of it.
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Dictionary.com named the term “6-7” his word of the year for 2025, and the worldwide craze for the “6-7” is still going strong during professional and college basketball games. Young fansplayers and coaches eagerly follow when teams approach 67 points, and chaos ensues when their team reaches the target.
The Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans are among the NBA teams that have “6-7” cameras during timeouts of some games. Seth Bennett, the Hornets’ director of marketing, said Charlotte’s game marketing and presentation teams began discussing a possible “6-7” camera to capitalize on the trend and Ball’s involvement in it.
“For us as a franchise, we always want to listen to our fans, and sometimes you listen to observe what they like and their trends and their tastes, and this is a way for us to connect to that and hopefully have them connect to us in a fun way when they experience it here,” Bennett said.
The Hornets’ camerawork is mostly limited to kids’ days and weekend games so as not to age. Michael Robinson, who attended a game between the Hornets and 76ers with his 6-year-old son Abel, said it was non-stop at home.
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Abel said he heard about it from his friends and on YouTube.
“It’s just cool,” Abel said. “It’s fun.”
The author of “6-7” can’t believe his reach
The origins of the “6-7” boom are Skrilla’s 2024 song “Doot Doot (6-7).” Skrilla leaked the song without much expectation, but it blew up on TikTok last year with basketball players including Ball and prep star Taylen Kinney contributing to its popularity.
No one really knows what 6-7 means, and Skrilla kept it that way when asked for a definition.
“Everyone created their own meaning,” he told The Associated Press. “Teachers created their own meaning. Football teams created theirs, basketball players. ‘6-7’ is global. It’s taller than me now. So ‘6-7’. Shout out to ‘6-7.’
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The absurd meme also has its own hand gesture: raise your palms up and alternately raise your arms. Charlotte forward Miles Bridges made the gesture several weeks ago after scoring a 3-point basket against the Indiana Pacers.
The decks are also 6 feet 7 inches.
“I think it’s a way for the team to have a little fun with LaMelo at all times, to be able to incorporate that just to tease him a little bit, and it’s a great sport at that too,” Robinson said.
The “6-7” is omnipresent on basketball courts around the world
Fans were watched by 67 points at games across the country. It seemed to bubble up first at women’s college gamesincluding in Oklahoma. Today, fans hold signs handed out by the school.
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On December 22, the Sooners led North Carolina Central 64-29 in the final seconds of the first half. When Aaliyah Chavez scored a 3-pointer at the buzzer, the fans went wild.
Oklahoma center Raegan Beers said the team loved giving fans that moment.
“That’s why I love this game (with kids),” she said. “I know a lot of us love this game here, just to have that energy in the building, and obviously lean into the trend of the moment, which is 6-7, whatever that means. And so it was so fun to have that moment and let the kids enjoy it.”
Daniel Durbin, director of the Annenberg Institute of Sports, Media and Society of Southern California, attended the USC women’s basketball game against Rutgers on Feb. 1 and witnessed the phenomenon firsthand. He noted that the DJ had even announced this possibility. The Trojans missed two free throws in the 66th, creating anticipation. When Yakiya Milton made a free throw to make it 67the crowd erupted in what Durbin called the loudest cheer of the game.
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Durbin said it fits into a long history of arbitrary sports traditions that fans have created to feel more connected to the action.
“Think of all the superstitions fans have during games, the rituals they adopt to ‘help’ the team win,” he said. “When fans cross the street to USC football games, most of them kick the base of a certain lamp post. Why? It makes them part of the game. They adopt a meaningless ritual that many USC fans perform for luck.”
Adults do it too
Even the coaches are involved. At Maryland’s annual Field Trip Day game, Terrapins coach Brenda Frese wore a swimsuit with the number 67 on it before the alert. LSU women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey made this hand gesture while on the big screen during a win over Morgan State, prompting an eruption from the home crowd and laughter from his players.
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Mulkey said his grandson got mad at her after a game because LSU blew 67 points and I went straight to 68.
TCU women beat Baylor 83-67 on February 12, Olivia Miles scored 40 points and Marta Suarez scored 27 – a total of 67. With both by his side during the post-match media session, Horned Frogs coach Mark Campbell got carried away.
“For a duo, I’ve never been part of a duo that scored 67 points in one game,” he said.
As Miles made the hand gesture and Suarez laughed, Campbell pointed at Miles and said, “That’s crazy. ‘6-7,'” adding the hand gesture.
This trend has also sometimes impacted the play on the field. After Maryland took a 64-18 lead against Central Connecticut State in December, the Terps attempted five straight 3-pointers before Yarden Garzon finally made one to give Maryland exactly 67 points.
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The craze perplexes parents, but Bennett said the Hornets adopted it to bring joy to young people.
“Overall it’s positive,” he said. “No way to make a negative out of something that really has nothing to do with it, just fun.”
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AP Sports Writers Brett Martel and Steve Reed contributed to this report.
