The Minnesota Timberwolves overhauled their roster this summer, bringing in guard LaMelo Ball to share the backcourt with Anthony Edwards. They are betting that a shift in vibe and a new ballhandling arrangement will carry them past the teams that have knocked them out of the playoffs.
On the first day of training camp in late September, most of the team had already been practicing together for weeks. The final drill of the day was the schoolyard game Around the World, in which a player must hit three shots in a row while circling the 3-point arc. All of the Wolves’ guards competed against one another.
Ball hit his first two shots, then missed the third, rimming out. He threw his hands on his head and yelled out in frustration. Edwards stood next to him, laughing, then drilled three in a row and threw an exaggerated fist bump in the air as the third fell. On his next turn, Ball knocked down three straight. At the next station, he hit two, missed the third and pulled his shirt nearly over his head in disbelief.
“A lot of joy,” Wolves veteran center Rudy Gobert said as he observed practice. “The vibes are great. I think we needed that.”
A younger, smaller roster built to beat the West’s best
Minnesota has made the Western Conference finals in two of the past three years. Even so, the Wolves rebuilt the roster around Edwards. The moves made them smaller, since they traded Julius Randle, their key return in the 2024 Karl-Anthony Towns trade, and fan favorite Naz Reid. They also got younger. Jonathan Kuminga, 24, signed in the offseason, and 26-year-old Ayo Dosunmu are expected to play key roles.
The Wolves hope the gamble helps them compete with the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, the past two conference champions, who used their size to knock Minnesota out in back-to-back playoffs.
“We weren’t the best version ourselves last year in the playoffs, but we also know how high the bar is in the Western Conference,” Wolves president Tim Connelly said at the team’s media day. “We’re very aware of what we have to overcome and how difficult that task will be. And we think we’re more prepared than ever.”
The Wolves recognized they needed to lessen Edwards’ ballhandling duties, and he welcomes the help.
“I feel like I’m a natural two guard at heart,” Edwards said. “I never thought I could develop any point guard skills. I know Finchy [coach Chris Finch] harps on me passing the ball, but now we got LaMelo, so I’m happy.”
Minnesota wanted Ball’s passing on the court, but also his energy and joy for a team its coach acknowledged often lacked both in recent years.
“We’ve traded moodiness for giddiness,” Finch said before a preseason game at Madison Square Garden this month.
That is why the end-of-practice shootouts matter. The Wolves hope they are a microcosm for the season.
Team sources said the organization believes its two stars can give each other something the other lacks. Ball gets a more serious edge to go with his showmanship. Edwards gets a teammate with an infectious joy, and the Wolves hope their bond keeps their superstar happy.
“When Melo walks in here, he comes into work smiling every day and just is engaged with everybody in the building,” Finch said. “Anthony’s a very joyous person, and that kind of energy, he feeds off of.”
“But Ant has a real seriousness to him. He has a killer mentality. They’re both gym rats, so that’s cool. But there is a seriousness to Ant. You can flip that switch on him in a heartbeat and he responds. And I think that’s what LaMelo needs to see too.”
Paris trip builds the bond
Every offseason, Gobert invites his Wolves teammates to join him in Paris. The trip nearly happened in the summer of 2025, but too many scheduling conflicts derailed it. He renewed the offer weeks before Minnesota’s second-round exit in the 2026 playoffs.
“I’ll set it up,” Gobert told his teammates. “You guys just have to get your plane tickets and come.”
Then in July, the Wolves acquired Ball, and they almost instantly saw renewed engagement from Edwards. Edwards hosted Ball at his home in Minneapolis, and the two began working out together later that month. Edwards joked that he and Ball bonded over the need to limit their profanity in postgame interviews.
“We really got the same personality, for real,” Ball said.
Together, they led the push to go to Paris. The team chartered a plane from Minneapolis for players in town. Fourteen players made the trip. Only Bones Hyland, who missed for personal reasons, and Donte DiVincenzo, who had surgery a few months earlier to repair a torn Achilles, did not attend.
“Ant and Melo did a great job hyping the guys up in the group text,” Gobert said. “And then I handled the logistics. It was really, really meaningful.”
Right after the flight, players headed to the gym for a workout. Gobert organized the team’s use of Clichy Hall, a venue with air conditioning, which Gobert assured his teammates is not common in France, about a block from the Seine River.
The Wolves later floated down the river on a boat tour through the city and past the Eiffel Tower. Several players point to it as the highlight of the trip.
“It was great. It makes you want to be honest with one another,” Gobert said. “It makes you want to accomplish things with one another, put the work in, do the uncomfortable things. I’m excited to see how it translates to what we’re going to do this year.
“I truly believe that we care about one another and we want to see each other succeed on and off the court. We want to see each other win. And in this business, it’s not common to see that.”
It is the kind of camaraderie Edwards has wanted for several seasons. He looked at Oklahoma City and noted that its togetherness had the Thunder playing like “15 puppets on one string,” which he meant as a compliment. At media day, he noted that the Wolves did not spend much time together after the season in years past, but he believes winning and building a connection begin in the summer.
Now, the Wolves have a teamwide fantasy football league. Edwards and Ball share their own handshake. Their group chat has been so lively that Gobert joked he has to put them on mute.
“I think a lot of people misjudge the NBA,” Edwards said at Fanatics Fest over the summer. “It’s just like AAU. The closer you and your team are, the more chance y’all got to win a championship.”
Ball eases Edwards’ load
In an Oct. 7 preseason game against the Indiana Pacers, the score was tied with 41 seconds left in the first half. The Pacers’ two best defenders, Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith, were pressing full court. Nesmith stood in front of Edwards to prevent the inbounds pass, so Ball inbounded to Gobert, who gave it right back as Ball ran up the court with Nembhard trailing.
Ball drew Pacers center Ivica Zubac to stop his progress, which forced Nembhard to switch and cover Gobert. Edwards kept jogging to the 3-point line and stood uncovered. Ball rifled a pass to him from underneath the basket.
It is exactly what the Wolves envisioned when they acquired Ball. They see the benefit for their big men. Center Joan Beringer said he had never gotten so many lob passes as he did on the first day of practice. The Wolves also believe forward Jaden McDaniels can make an All-Star leap this season with Ball getting him more open looks.
Last season, according to Genius IQ, Edwards brought the ball up the court more than any other Wolves player. His 3.7 assists per game were his lowest since 2021-22. His isolation plays shot up to 14.6 per 100 possessions, a career high and the seventh-highest total in the league.
“We needed to make the game easier for Anthony,” Finch said. “There might not be a guard in the league that creates more efficient offense for his teammates than LaMelo.”
Ball’s teammates in Charlotte last season had an effective field goal percentage of 67.9% after he passed to them for an assist opportunity. That ranked second among 199 qualified players. McDaniels ranked first, but with significantly less volume than Ball.
With Ball taking on more on-ball duties, Edwards believes he can also sharpen his defense.
“I feel like the last couple years I couldn’t play defense as well as I wanted to because I was bringing the ball up,” Edwards said. “At times I had to score all the time. I was super tired.”
Opening night in Miami
Minnesota opens its season Wednesday night in Miami (7:30 p.m. ET) in a matchup of two teams that made blockbuster trades this summer. It gives the Wolves a chance to test the chemistry between Edwards and Ball that looked natural in the preseason. In the four exhibition games the duo played, Ball led the team in assists in three, and Edwards led in scoring in all four.
The Wolves understand there will be growing pains, especially if Ball sits out time. He has averaged 50.5 games per season in his six-year career. His 72 games played last season were his most since 2021-22, his second year in the league.
Finch knows the team has not yet faced any real adversity. Still, the Wolves are banking on both the vibe shift and their backcourt duo to carry them through.
“LaMelo’s going to make mistakes. He’s just going to do it with a smile on his face,” Finch said. “He’s going to be one of those guys that’s hard to stay mad at. Anthony’s hard to stay mad at too.”