LaMelo Ball Traded to Anthony Edwards' T-Wolves for Naz Reid; Rumors on Hornets' Return Revealed

The LaMelo Ball era with the Charlotte Hornets has come to an end after the team traded the veteran point guard to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a pairing with Anthony Edwards.

Per ESPN's Shams Charania, the Hornets will send Ball and Josh Green to Minnesota in exchange for Naz Reid, an unprotected first-round pick in 2033, three first-round pick swaps in 2028, 2029 and 2030, and three second-round picks in 2029, 2032 and 2033.

Ball's future in Charlotte has been a discussion point dating back to early last season when Yahoo Sports' Kelly Iko reported on Nov. 20 that the former first-round pick was "open" to a trade. He dismissed the report at the time, calling it "false info."

It made sense for the Hornets to at least start exploring their options with Ball at that time.

Since going 43-39 in 2021-22, which coincided with Ball making his first All-Star appearance, the Hornets' win total decreased in each of the next three seasons down to 19 in 2024-25.

There has also seemed to be a disconnect between Ball and the coaching staff at times. He was benched for the final 4:32 in the fourth quarter of a 127-118 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Nov. 19 after scoring 18 points on 5-of-21 shooting with nine assists and six turnovers.

Ball's shooting efficiency has been a point of emphasis over the past two seasons. His 11.2 three-point attempts per game during the 2024-25 campaign would have tied Stephen Curry for most in the NBA if he played enough games to qualify, but he only connected on 33.9 percent of them.

The 2025-26 season was a bounce back for the Hornets and Ball, who averaged 20.1 points and 7.1 assists per game in 72 appearances. They finished 44-38 and made the play-in tournament, but fell short of the postseason with a loss to the Orlando Magic to determine the No. 8 seed.

There have been criticisms throughout Ball's career about his lack of defensive ability. Hornets head coach Charles Lee even made a point of saying he wanted to challenge the point guard on that end of the floor when he first got the job.

Another thing that has held Ball back in Charlotte and could be a huge concern for his new team is availability. He missed at least 21 games in four of his first five seasons, including a total of 141 games missed in three seasons from 2022-23 to 2024-25.

Ankle issues have been the primary reason for Ball's injury woes. He has already missed time this season due to an impingement in his right ankle.

Ball is a high-risk, high-reward bet for the Timberwolves, though one they probably had to make. At his best, Ball can be one of the most dynamic playmakers in the NBA.

During his first four seasons, Ball averaged 20.0 points, 7.4 assists and 6.2 rebounds per game. He shot 37.4 percent from behind the arc on 7.6 attempts per contest.

As long as head coach Chris Finch can coach some of the bad habits out of his game that Ball developed in recent years, this could turn into a strong addition for the Timberwolves as they look to compete with the top-tier teams in the Western Conference.

Despite coming off the most successful three-year run in franchise history, it became apparent the Timberwolves as constructed had plateaued.

Their two Western Conference Finals appearances in 2024 and 2025 saw them go a combined 2-8, then they followed that up by losing to the San Antonio Spurs in six games in the second round this past season.

The first indication that the T-Wolves knew a shake up was needed came when they traded Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team deal that also included the Chicago Bulls.

Minnesota's return for Randle was only Mo Gueye and a swap of picks in the 2026 NBA draft, moving down from No. 28 to 33. Around the same time the trade was announced, the Timberwolves also agreed to a five-year, $112 million contract to keep Ayo Dosunmu.

Ball gives the Timberwolves a legitimate point guard that they really haven't had since ascending to becoming a consistent playoff threat. Mike Conley Jr. has done a lot of heavy lifting at the position, but he's in the twilight of his career.

Now, the T-Wolves have a potentially dominant offense with Ball, Edwards and Dosunmu as the three primary scoring options. The defense figures to remain solid with Rudy Gobert in the middle.

There's still work to do on the margins as Minnesota looks to catch the Oklahoma City Thunder and Spurs in the West, but this is about the best move the team could have made to address its biggest weakness.