Will LaMelo Ball and Anthony Edwards work?
The Minnesota Timberwolves made one of the biggest moves of the offseason, acquiring LaMelo Ball from the Charlotte Hornets.
The Timberwolves gave up Naz Reid, a 2033 unprotected first-round pick, first-round pick swaps (2028, 2029, 2030), and second-round picks (2029, 2032, 2033) in the deal to get Ball and sharpshooter Josh Green.
Days before the trade was reported, the Timberwolves traded Julius Randle in a salary dump to the Brooklyn Nets, attaching a first-round pick and only getting back a second-round pick in return.
The need for a playmaker like Ball became evident for the Timberwolves in the second round of the playoffs when they lost in six games to the eventual Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs.
Chris Finch Speaks
Appearing on the Road Trippin podcast, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch weighed in on the need for LaMelo.
“In the playoffs it was just double team after double team. We got to get him back to his natural position off the ball. We didn’t create enough catch and shoot threes for him and when you look at the numbers with LaMelo on the floor with his teammates and the efficiency and the production, I mean Kon Knueppel shot 7% higher from the three-point line with LaMelo on the floor than he did without. I mean that’s a massive stat for a great shooter and that’s a big bump for a great shooter.”
The Spurs often doubled Edwards throughout the playoffs, and nobody else on the Timberwolves would make them pay, especially with the injury to Donte DiVincenzo.
Ball will take much of that pressure off Edwards given his ability to create for himself and others.
A Deeper Look
In the regular season, Edwards shot 39% from three on 8.4 attempts per game. The majority of his attempts were pull-up threes, where he shot 35% on six attempts. He shot 49.6% on catch-and-shoot threes.
The theory is that having a playmaker on the level of LaMelo will lead to more catch-and-shoot opportunities for Edwards. Even if he doesn't always take the shot, Edwards' ability to attack off the dribble and get to the rim is second to none.
Edwards had more unassisted baskets (367) to assisted baskets (235) last season, which isn't out of the ordinary for star players. With LaMelo, expect the number of assisted baskets to go up, as not only will the catch-and-shoot opportunities open up, but so will the cutting opportunities.
