Early Signs Indicate That The New Anthony Edwards/LaMelo Ball Duo Is Going To Be Absolutely Electric

With so much attention being paid to LeBron/Jaylen Brown being Sixers and Giannis being a member of the Heat, it's easy to forget that before all of that even happened, we had the LaMelo Trade. I feel as though because that happened first, people have sort of overlooked what might be brewing over in the Twin Cities for a Wolves team that is looking to finally break through and make their first Finals. To me, they're one of the more intriguing teams not just in the West, but in the entire league as we enter a new season. How do things go without Naz Reid? How does Jonathan Kuminga fit? Will Joan Beringer and Terrence Shannon Jr take the leap that many predict is on the horizon? 

And then of course there's the biggest question of all, which is how will Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball work as the new franchise duo. The Wolves recalibrated their roster and brought in an elite offensive engine to play next to Ant, and they're essentially banking their entire future on this duo not only working out, but winning at a high level.

So how's it look? Just like you thought it might. Electric City, population the Minnesota Timberwolves

You know how it's always been a bit of an issue that as the primarily ball handler Anthony Edwards still had no real idea what to do with a double team? Problem solved. Just give the ball to LaMelo instead and let him figure all that out. A lot of focus has been about their ability to dominate in transition, but to me that clip showed you another area where this duo is going to be extremely dangerous.

Three point shooting.

While the haters and losers of which there are still many continue to cry and cry about 3P volume in todays' NBA, it remains a fact that in today's game, you have to be able to have that tool in your toolbox as a primary offensive option. C&S 3s, pull up 3s, all of it. As a reminder, Anthony Edwards shot 39.9% from deep on 8.4 3PA a night. The year before, 39.5% on 10.3 a night. LaMelo? 36.8% on 10.3 3PA last year and 33.9% on 11.2 3PA the year before. You're talking about arguably the most productive three point shooting backcourt in the league, who were pretty damn efficient on very very high volume. That's terrifying for opposing defenses when you also factor in all the other areas both players are solid in.

Advertisement

Add in the elite OREB ability of Gobert/Beringer, and we're starting to see the seeds of what could very well be one of the best offenses in the league this year. It wouldn't shock me at all if the Wolves took a jump from 13th in offense last year to comfortably in the top 10, and considering they already had a top 8 defense and didn't really lose that many impact players on that end of the floor, I have no reason to think that with normal health that should change much either. This could easily be a 117 ORTG / 112 DRTG / +5 net type of team, which usually translates to wins in the low 50s. They won 49 last year, so that jump feels about right. 

What I do know is that it's only taken a few preseason games for us to see that at a baseline, this team is going to be fun as hell to watch. Their an instant candidate to be an elite League Pass team, and aside from their style of play, the whole experiment is going to be fascinating to watch. The pressure is on Edwards to finally break through given how he's talked about, and this is probably the best roster he's ever had around him. This thing either works, or the Wolves become a team that could very well be blowing it up in the near future.