The Hornets spent the back half of last season looking like a team ready to turn a corner. Then they traded away the guy who helped drive that surge.
LaMelo Ball is now with the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he’ll join Anthony Edwards and give Minnesota a backcourt with real punch. For the Wolves, that’s the kind of move that can change the shape of an offense. For Charlotte, it leaves behind a hole that may be a lot bigger than it first appears.
Ball was never a simple player to evaluate in Charlotte. Over his six seasons with the Hornets, he was one of the NBA’s most electric guards, the kind who could light up a scoreboard and make a game feel tilted in his favor. At the same time, the familiar concerns never went away: the injuries, the questionable shot choices, and the lack of team success that kept following him around.
Still, Charlotte’s decision to move him came after a stretch that suggested the roster was finding something. The Hornets went 18-9 after the All-Star break and finished with the second-best offensive and net ratings in that span.
The starting group of Ball, Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel, Miles Bridges, and Moussa Diabate was rolling. It would have been easy to see that run as a springboard into 2026-27.
Instead, Charlotte traded Ball this offseason, and also sent Miles Bridges to the Phoenix Suns.
The front office has already lined up another option at point guard. Coby White arrived at last year’s trade deadline and was re-signed, making him the likely starter moving forward. White brings plenty of talent, but he’s more of a combo guard than the kind of engine Ball was for the Hornets’ offense.
That difference matters. Last season, Charlotte put up a 123.2 offensive rating with Ball on the floor.
Without him, that number dropped all the way to 110.6. That split has been a recurring theme in recent years, and it’s a big reason the Hornets may not be able to simply pick up where they left off.
The picture in Minnesota looks a lot different. The Timberwolves finished 13th in offensive rating during the regular season, then ranked 12th among the 16 playoff teams in the postseason.
They were close to the middle of the pack offensively, but Ball raises the ceiling in a major way. Minnesota has been hunting for that lead playmaker for years, and if Ball stays healthy, the Wolves should settle comfortably into the league’s top 10 offenses.
Charlotte, meanwhile, can still be an above-average group on that end. But matching the heights it reached late last season now feels like a much taller ask. Without Ball, the Hornets could also slide in the standings.
In Other News...
J. Cole Just Added More Hype To Minnesotas New Star Pairing
During a Minnesota stop on The Fall Off tour, J. Cole took a moment that will land well with Timberwolves fans, voicing his excitement about the teams new partnership between Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball. Cole, who has a stake in the Hornets where Ball previously played, praised the pairing and said he believes the two guards can be a strong team together.
For Minnesota, the interest goes beyond celebrity approval. The Timberwolves brought in Ball after reaching the Western Conference semifinals, adding another skilled facilitator to a roster already built around Edwards, Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels. The fit has obvious appeal on paper, and Coles enthusiasm only adds to the buzz around what the Wolves hope becomes one of the leagues more electric backcourt pairings. [Read more 🡒]
Lakers Just Got A Better Shot At Jonathan Kuminga
The Jonathan Kuminga market took another turn this week when Denvers five-team deal that sent Peyton Watson to Cleveland effectively narrowed the list of teams with a real path to the young forward. For a player still working through his next contract, every team that drops out matters, and the ripple effect has left the Lakers and Timberwolves looking like the most relevant suitors as the free-agency picture settles around salary-cap math and the availability of trade pieces.
Minnesota still has a lane here, including the ability to put a competitive annual number on the table, but the trade side of the equation may be where things get tricky. If the Timberwolves are serious about keeping Kuminga in the conversation, they have to balance what they can pay with what they can move, and that is where the process could get complicated as the market continues to tighten. [Read more 🡒]