Chris Finch Reveals Underrated Impact of Timberwolves’ LaMelo Ball Trade

Most of the summer talk about the trade for point guard LaMelo Ball has focused on his passing and his fit next to guard Anthony Edwards.

Head coach Chris Finch sees another change that shows up more in the locker room than on the floor, and before Monday's preseason game at Madison Square Garden he explained how Ball has lifted the energy around the group.

Finch described Ball as a player who is always in a good mood and comes in smiling, and he said Ball and Edwards share a joy that rubs off on the rest of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

He also looked back at how the last few seasons felt inside the building, and he told reporters something most coaches would keep to themselves.

"We referred to ourselves as a moody team in the last couple of years at times, and it's probably gotten in our way."

Finch then said the Wolves have swapped moodiness for giddiness and still need to find a balance between the two.

That echoes center Naz Reid, who said in May after Minnesota lost to the San Antonio Spurs in the second round that the team had more than enough talent but needed to be less moody and more selfless.

Reid now plays in Charlotte as the main piece the Hornets got for Ball, along with a 2033 first-round pick, three first-round pick swaps and three second-round picks, while forward Julius Randle went to Brooklyn in the same deal.

Nobody doubts the talent after Ball averaged 20.1 points, 7.1 assists and 4.8 rebounds in 72 games for Charlotte last season.

What Minnesota needs to learn is how he blends in, and Finch told the New York Daily News that Ball has been deferential and is taking better shots than he did with the Hornets.

That showed in Monday's 122-104 win over the Knicks, when Ball had 10 points and seven assists in 22 minutes as Edwards led the way with 26 points and forward Jaden McDaniels added 22.

The five turnovers Ball committed still need cleaning up, though his teammates have raved about his energy since camp opened.

I think the mood change could be worth as much to Minnesota as Ball's box score numbers.

This group reached the Western Conference Finals two seasons ago before losing in the second round last spring, so something other than talent held it back.

Players who enjoy coming to work are easier to coach through a long season, and Finch has already shared how he plans to pair his two guards on the floor.

Around those two, the Wolves re-signed guard Ayo Dosunmu and added forward Jonathan Kuminga, who has been praised for accepting a new role in Minnesota.

With center Rudy Gobert still in the middle, this roster looks deep and far more relaxed than the one that fell short last spring.

Minnesota is 3-1 in the preseason with Detroit coming to town on Wednesday and a trip to Chicago on Friday, and I want to see whether Finch still calls this group giddy after its first rough week of the regular season.