Timberwolves 'increase their upside' with LaMelo
Jay Croucher and Drew Dinsick discuss how the Minnesota Timberwolves' move to acquire LaMelo Ball and how the trade raises their ceiling in a competitive Western Conference.
Video Transcript
Okay, Drew Dincic, big news of the day.
LaMelo Ball traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves, along with Josh Green, for Naz Reid, and a motherlode of draft assets.
The Wolves now 11 to 1 to win the West, 22 to 1 to win the NBA title.
They were 30 to 1 before the trade.
What do you think of the trade for the Wolves?
Is there any way to bet on or against them?
Well, I think if you had any inclination to play a future, I understand why the market's moving, and I understand why this raises the Timberwolves' chances of winning a title.
their offensive ceiling is now substantially higher with LaMelo Ball in the mix.
their defensive floor has gone down.
but you know, and, you know, I'm assuming they're gonna find some replacement for Naz Reid in terms of size off the bench, and it, th- it's not going to materially, you know, alter their defense, which is anchored around Rudy Gobert.
So I- as I look at the team now, I definitely see the potential for higher ceiling.
but, I also am very concerned about the way that the chemistry is gonna work out between these characters.
I mean, Finch has now a hornet's nest of personality to deal with, and we're c- we're coming off of, a Knicks championship where it very much felt like the chemistry between the players really got them to a place where they were more than the sum of their parts.
and if the Timberwolves are gonna ultimately beat the best of the West, which is elite, they're gonna need these guys to come together and have, you know, perfect chemistry.
And I don't know, this is a tough group to see that happening with considering the personalities.
So I'm a little buyer beware that this might, ultimately get a lot of people fired.
but I definitely understand why the market supports the Timberwolves having a better chance of winning a title now.
Yeah, I think that's the case.
They've just increased their upside, and I think I love this trade for the Wolves just because I think as they were constructed, they just didn't really have a viable path to beating OKC or San Antonio.
And now you at least have a shot.
I think you've just increased your upside, your variance.
I think if there is any antidote to Victor Wembanyama, it is deep pull-up jump shooting, and now you have LaMelo Ball and Anthony Edwards.
So the depth isn't great.
They don't have much, much flexibility left.
But I think LaMelo, he is the exact type of guy that you should be betting on if you're taking a high upside swing.
The Hornets had, an offensive rating that was kind of commensurate with the best offense of all time when he was on the court, and then they had the worst offense in the league when he was on the bench.
So I think LaMelo, just his offensive upside, particularly against teams like OKC and San Antonio, make this a good, swing for the Wolves to take.
