LaMelo Ball is excited to work with Rudy Gobert.
LaMelo Ball was brought in by the Minnesota Timberwolves to take the pressure off of Anthony Edwards as the only scorer and creator on the team.
LaMelo is one of the best point guards in the league at creating his own shot and shots for others, ranking in the 99th percentile as a creator and the 96th percentile as a passer according to Crafted NBA.
While Edwards is going to see the benefits of having a true second creator to take the pressure off of him when the ball is forced out of his hands, the rest of the team is going to benefit as well, as many of them have not played with a point guard who sees the floor and spreads the ball as LaMelo does.
The biggest beneficiary could be Rudy Gobert.
LaMelo On Gobert
Speaking at NBA Media Day, LaMelo said about building chemistry with Gobert, “I mean, he’s played basketball a long time, I have too, so it’s kind of easy. He’s just a big and in a little for real. He’s in the Hall of Fame for sure, so that’s tough to say, but I play a lot of 2K; you just play a lot of basketball. Basketball is the same from a video game to on court to real life.”
Gobert has already established himself as one of the best screeners in the league, and while he rolls to the basket on those screens, the ball doesn’t always find him.
For the first time as a member of the Timberwolves, Gobert will be playing with an elite playmaker who can capitalize on Gobert’s screen-and-roll ability. It’ll be up to Gobert to catch and finish.
Other Ways LaMelo Helps Gobert
Along with finding him on the roll, LaMelo will make life easier on Gobert with lobs underneath the basket.
Gobert rarely wanders outside of the restricted area, with 76% of his shot attempts coming inside the circle. He’s often parked around the rim, and now he has a player who can manipulate defenses, bring the rim protector up to challenge, and find Gobert over the top for easy alley-oops.
It will take time for the two to build chemistry, as Gobert likes to be in certain spots, and LaMelo might want things done a certain way with how a screen is set or where Gobert needs to be, but enough reps should have them clicking by the end of the season.
