The arrival of LaMelo Ball—in one of the summer’s most surprising moves—could alter how Edwards functions as the cornerstone and leader of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Sharing the floor with another playmaker, a seasoned one like the former Hornets guard, would, in principle, allow him to reap more of the advantages already created, attack moving defenses, and reduce the wear of having to initiate so many possessions by himself, since the Timberwolves have come off two nearly PG-less seasons, with the burden falling on a 36-year-old Mike Conley.
This opportunity to reduce attention, the usage and the ball-handling load opens up new paths to redistribute that energy: finishing at the rim and defense.
Chris Finch, in an interview with the MinnPost, has acknowledged that his team, on one hand, will have to double its efforts to build help around LaMelo (an average defender but unfairly caricatured), with Gobert still a cornerstone inside with the support of McDaniels, and several of the new outside signings (Kuminga, Josh Green and Cody Williams, along with Dosunmu).
And here Edwards’ role would suddenly gain momentum to keep the Timberwolves among the Western Conference’s defensive elite, despite LaMelo’s arrival.
The departures of Randle and Naz Reid also pose how to respond to opponents with more size. Finch opens the door to small lineups and envisions Edwards capable of handling certain matchups with power forwards. In addition, he will demand more rebounding contributions, where to date he has produced 1.93 but without exploiting his extraordinary leaping ability.
Is There a Rival for Wemby?
The moment is approaching for him—the chance to contend for the MVP. By age (just 25), by situation, and because Wembanyama and Jokic need someone who can pressure them from the perimeter.
In the 2025-26 regular season, Edwards averaged 28.8 points, 5 rebounds and 3.7 assists, across 61 games, with a 48.9% shooting from the field and a 39.9% from three. And those 61 games, four short of the 65 that are the minimum required, ended any pretense of discussing his candidacy in advance.
His prior reference is the 2024-25 voting, in which he finished tied with Cade Cunningham in seventh place, with 12 points. He received two votes for fourth place and six for fifth, still far from a race for the honor won by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
