The Charlotte Hornets have given up on their goofy, gifted, accursed son LaMelo Ball, who was shipped to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a trade Thursday morning.
In return for their franchise player and Josh Green, the Hornets received a pittance: forward Naz Reid, a 2033 unprotected first-round pick, three first-round pick swaps of dubious value (2028, 2029, 2030), three second-round picks that begin in 2029, and the relief of shedding Green's bad contract. Hornets fans will be rightfully depressed to learn that the player they held in such high esteem netted such scraps on the open market. They can take mild solace in the fact that the Hornets now have a trade exception of over $40 million, and the NBA's second-largest quiver of first-round picks, so their front office can keep maneuvering in the months ahead. But gone is the 6-foot-7 point guard they drafted at No. 3 in 2020, who in Charlotte became one of the most inventive passers in the world, got up an appalling volume of pull-up threes, and infuriated his believers and non-believers alike.
This move has a certain comic timing: The Hornets had just found their most promising form of Ball's six-year NBA tenure. Charlotte surged in the back half of the 2025-26 season, assembling a couple of impressive win streaks to finish 44-38 and slip into the No. 9 seed. All their young players were gelling. Rookie Kon Knueppel had a historically sweet shooting season, fourth-year big Moussa Diabate broke out as a starter, and third-year wing Brandon Miller thrived on both sides of the floor. Ball, as the lunatic offensive engine driving it all, rehabilitated his value in the league. (Given this trade, imagine how low it must have been before the Hornets went on this run!)
With Ball now going to Minnesota, it's time to test my long- and painfully held view that he's a real and good basketball player. Out of the many knocks on him—his shot selection, whimsical defense, unserious mien, driving ability in the half court, driving ability in a vehicle—the one thing that genuinely shakes my conviction is his health. Due to injuries, primarily to his ankles, Ball missed huge stretches of his first six seasons, which in order saw him play in 51, 75, 36, 22, 47, and 72 games. The Wolves are making a big gamble on his body, but it's a justifiable move as they overhaul their roster this offseason, with this trade getting rolled into their previous salary dump of Julius Randle onto the Brooklyn Nets. As previously constructed, the Wolves weren't going to do anything but immiserate the Denver Nuggets in a recurring matchup nightmare. This new build gives them upside that might even allow them to challenge Western Conference stalwarts like the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
The Wolves had reportedly been trying to trade for Ball for two years, which would have been interesting information to have reported at any point in the last two years. They could have drafted him in the first place, of course, but they were reportedly spooked by him saying that after his NBA career, he wanted to be president of the United States. I can see why Minnesota targeted him now: Ball joins draft classmate Anthony Edwards in the league's most brazen and unpredictable backcourt, on and off the floor, with skillsets that neatly complement one another. Edwards can lock in for the on-ball defense that Ball could never provide; Ball can snag the rebounds that Edwards disdains; Edwards can slash with speed and hops that Ball can't touch; and Ball slings passes that Edwards will never see.
The Wolves have lacked dynamic point guards, and Edwards, never the most natural playmaker, has spent many postseasons trying to wring halfcourt offense out of a rock. With Ball at the helm, Edwards is liberated to move off the ball, where he will get far cleaner looks from three and throw down hellacious transition dunks enabled by Ball's outlet passing. Edwards should be left with more energy for defense, where he has long shown incredible tools but limited fuel and focus. A lineup with these two, Ayo Dosunmu, Jaden McDaniels, and Rudy Gobert offers a nice balance of offense and defense. As for the potentially combustive personality mix of Edwards, Ball, and Gobert—not my problem. Good luck!
