Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) drives past Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) during the second half at the Spectrum Center.
Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images
Guards Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball were once considered NBA Draft rivals. They’ll now be teammates.
On Thursday, the Charlotte Hornets agreed to trade Ball and guard Josh Green to the Minnesota Timberwolves for center Naz Reid, a 2033 unprotected first-round pick, three second-rounders (2029, 2032 and 2033) and three first-round pick swaps (2028, 2029 and 2030).
Edwards (pick No. 1 in 2020) and Ball (pick No. 3) will form a star-studded backcourt aiming to lead the Timberwolves to their first championship. Still, it will feel odd watching them team up after they sparked debates before the 2020 draft.
Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball were cast as rivals before 2020 NBA Draft
Ball and Edwards were both considered potential No. 1 picks in 2020. The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov rated Ball No. 1 and Edwards No. 2 on his final big board before the draft.
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 25, 2026
ESPN analyst Jay Bilas disagreed with that ranking. He preferred Edwards because of his elite athleticism.
“Edwards is a better scorer than [Ball], and he’s a vastly superior athlete,” Bilas said before the draft. “Edwards is another guy who hasn’t shown a ton of interest in defense. Although he’s much more capable of being a great defender than LaMelo Ball is … it’s just an eye of the beholder thing, they’re both different players.”
Edwards’ bounce (41.5-inch vertical) makes him a better finisher at the rim, one reason he’s been a better player than Ball thus far. In six seasons with Minnesota, the former Georgia Bulldogs standout has made four All-Star Games and earned two second-team All-NBA nods. This past season, he averaged a career-high 28.8 points per game on 48.9 percent shooting from the field.
Ball, however, is no slouch. He averaged 20.8 PPG and 7.3 assists per game in six seasons with Charlotte. He also made one All-Star Game and won 2020-21 Rookie of the Year. Ball’s better rookie season left Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman wondering if Minnesota made the right selection.
“Edwards clearly offers elite scoring potential, but Ball’s skill set and strengths are better suited to elevate the Timberwolves’ roster,” wrote Wasserman in a 2021 re-draft, in which Ball went No. 1 to Minnesota. “He wins the ‘make teammates better’ debate with his passing, unselfishness and quick processing.”
But now Minnesota can say, why pick between Ball and Edwards when you can have both?
Clark Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.
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