For many years, nothing about the Minnesota Timberwolves’ environment was desirable to newcomers. Now, it’s a locale capable of extracting the best out of its new All-Star point guard LaMelo Ball.
The winters are cold, and the stadium is old. The coaching staff constantly turns over, and the owners are not well received by the fanbase. Minnesota’s collection of players on the court didn’t constitute a competitive — or even fun — team on a night-to-night basis.
But all of that (aside from the cold) has changed over the last five years.
On and off the court, the Wolves have a firm commitment to winning because the franchise’s leaders hold each other to high standards and constantly make decisions that prove this team is different than before. The Timberwolves foster a winning environment — one that should unlock their newest All-Star point guard in a way we have not seen.
LaMelo Ball lands in Minnesota, taking on its long-term on-ball floor general role alongside Anthony Edwards. The Wolves believe Ball and Edwards can be a star duo capable of leading this franchise to a championship. They had been high on Ball long before he became available this summer. So was Edwards, who thought Ball would be a great addition.
“Definitely means a lot,” Ball told the media during his introductory press conference two weeks ago. “When anybody values you and sees what you can do, I mean, for sure grateful. Like I always say, it’s a blessing.”
Ball enters his seventh year in the NBA with a career average of 20 points per game, 7.3 assists, and 5.7 rebounds. He’s one of the NBA’s most dynamic, electrifying on-ball creators. But Ball has yet to make the playoffs. He has yet to experience the pressure of a seven-game series.
And to bring him in, the Wolves moved Julius Randle and Naz Reid, who have played in a combined 90 playoff games.
The Charlotte Hornets played two games last season in the Play-In Tournament, where their year and 28-10 finish to the regular season came to an end. During that stretch, Ball drove winning and tasted postseason basketball.
But the culture the Wolves have created is drastically different from his environment in Charlotte. Ball believes this new setting will help him as a player.
“I think it can do a lot,” Ball said. “I’m just coming here ready to play. I am here to learn, and just give it my all.”
There’s a level of risk the Timberwolves are taking by shipping out their final remaining tradable first-round pick and players like Reid and Randle, who have played winning basketball in the playoffs. Meanwhile, Ball hasn’t endured a playoff series and has only played in 62.9% of Charlotte’s total regular season games since he entered the league.
However, the Wolves believe much of the reason he has missed extended time consistently is because of wonky, isolated injuries, and aren’t too concerned about his long-term health. The Wolves also believe that Ball has proven he can drive winning better than the outside narrative indicates.
“In the last year or two in particular, the maturity kind of rose tremendously,” Tim Connelly said at Ball’s introductory press conference. “And I just think he is primed to help lead us to places we haven’t been yet. … He’s 24 years old, and when he’s healthy, he’s driven winning. So we hope that continues, and we really want to take the next step, and we think he can lead the way.”
The Hornets were 187-295 in their six years with LaMelo Ball. Still, it’s hard to pin much of that losing on him. Around Ball existed a non-winning environment. Three different coaches cycled through, and the roster Charlotte’s front office assembled was never capable of winning until last season, when Ball settled in as an intelligent orchestrator of offense.
That’s the type of player the Wolves think Ball will be in Minnesota. And within this new environment, it is plausible to expect that will be the case.
For most of Ball’s time in Charlotte, his poor shot selection and untimely turnovers influenced his public perception. Still, he was also a product of his environment — a losing, ever-changing environment similar to the one the Wolves played in for years. Around Ball in Minnesota, a very different environment now thrives. From top to bottom, on and off the court, the Wolves should both invigorate Ball and hold him to higher standards.
“Honestly, just everything,” Ball said. “I don’t see nothing bad in it. From the coaches, to the staff, and I’ve already been here a little, I mean, seeing the people. Everybody already seems cool. So all of it is just blessings.”
LaMelo Ball will share the floor with Edwards, the type of superstar he has never played with before. Ball should feel less pressure to carry the offensive load with his scoring, which should allow him to be more efficient as a scorer, because he can set up Edwards frequently with his passing.
Jaden McDaniels, Rudy Gobert, Ayo Dosunmu, Josh Green, Joan Beringer, Terrence Shannon Jr. (and Donte DiVincenzo once he returns) round out the top end of Minnesota’s rotation with a blend of competitive defense, on-ball offensive creation, and off-ball shooting. Add all of those players together, and that is more talent than Ball typically has by his side, even though the Wolves still have a flawed roster lacking size and forward depth.
Chris Finch, a well-respected coach who is demanding to play for, will orchestrate the offense. Finch likes how Ball can create offense late in the shot clock after a broken play, but he’s also aware that the Wolves will need Ball to continue refining his shot selection. Playing for a straight-faced, no-nonsense coach should hold Ball to higher standards than he was in Charlotte.
Ball will also be playing under the guidance of Minnesota’s medical staff, which the NBA awarded as the league’s best training staff last season and has a credible track record of keeping players healthy.
Beyond that, the front office and ownership group have continued to pull the levers, indicating this team will remain completely different from what it has been in years past.
Connelly would rather get fired for swinging and missing on a big trade than constantly be worried about getting fired. Minnesota’s new ownership group led by Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore has given Connelly and his staff the freedom to go into the luxury tax to make those big swings.
Rodriguez and Lore listened to Minnesota’s fanbase by unveiling a rebrand featuring a throwback logo, jerseys, and courts. They launched an improved Timberwolves mobile app, spent $1.5 million on new lighting in Target Center, and have been in exploratory talks on building a new stadium.
All of that indicates the commitment Minnesota’s brass has both on and off the court to ensure this franchise and the environment around it feel different than it has recently. And around that entire product sits a consistently packed crowd in Minnesota that will welcome Ball in with ears-piercing roars — serving as a consistent reminder of this team’s lofty goals.
Bringing in a player like LaMelo Ball is a risk, sure. But the environment the Timberwolves have created around him can unlock another level of production that will coexist well with his persistent joy for the game. The right environment can launch a player onto a higher level. And the environment in Minnesota, despite the outside temperatures, has the potential to do just that for Ball.
