LaMelo Ball’s arrival brings a refreshed outlook to the Timberwolves. He is a constant source of positive energy that Minnesota hopes will remain illuminating for years to come. However, a different star player could have landed in Minnesota this summer. A star much different than Ball.<\/p>\n
Shams Charania recently reported<\/a> that the Wolves, along with the Pistons, were among the teams interested in trading for seven-time All-Star Kawhi Leonard this summer before he ultimately returned to the Toronto Raptors via a long and drawn-out trade with the LA Clippers.<\/p>\n Not only did the Wolves want to acquire Leonard, but Charania also reported that they wanted to extend the 35-year-old’s contract.<\/p>\n It is a very good thing that didn’t happen.<\/p>\n Kawhi is not what the Wolves needed<\/p>\n Leonard is still one of the NBA\u2019s top two-way players. Last season in LA, he averaged 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists on 50.5% from the floor and 38.7% from deep during 32.1 minutes across 65 games. He made his seventh All-Star team and finished seventh in MVP voting.<\/p>\n Defensively, Leonard partnering up with Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert would have formed one of the NBA\u2019s most herculean triads on that side of the floor. Leonard would have given Chris Finch more flexibility in where and how he could deploy McDaniels on defense. Leonard, with his 6\u20197\u201d frame and 7\u20193\u201d wingspan, would have also given Finch a Hall of Fame defender to throw at Victor Wembanyama and other bigger frontcourt players who can space the floor.<\/p>\n Financially, the Wolves could have acquired Leonard\u2019s $50 million expiring salary by trading Julius Randle and Naz Reid. But in doing so, Minnesota would have had minimal cap space remaining, with its biggest question from last season still looming heavily over its head:<\/p>\n Who in the world is the starting point guard?<\/p>\n Leonard took 19.4 shots per game last season. He has always been the type of offensive talent who you want to take as many shots as possible. But we have seen what another polarizing, high-volume, high-isolation scoring forward has looked like next to Edwards.<\/p>\n Julius Randle is a high-volume scorer. Kawhi Leonard is similar in that way, which is why it is a good thing that the Timberwolves did not acquire LA’s star this summer. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n Leonard is much more of a face-up scorer than the post-up scorer that Randle is. In every way possible aside from passing, Leonard is a better player than Randle. However, their games are similar. They are both high-volume, high-isolation forwards.\u00a0<\/p>\n Leonard pairing up with Edwards, while the raw scoring ability between them is tantalizing, would likely lead to similar possessions to the ones Edwards and Randle generated, where ball movement dried up and no meaningful, repeatable two-man game emerged.<\/p>\n Ball uniquely and very effectively blends his scoring with elite-level passing<\/a>. He is much more what the Wolves need offensively than Leonard. There is a world where Ball can develop a two-man game with Edwards, and both of them together\u2014not at different times\u2014can lead Minnesota\u2019s offense. Not just for this season and next, but for the foreseeable future because of the shared timeline they are on.<\/p>\n VIBES \ud83d\udcc8\ud83d\udcc8\ud83d\udcc8 pic.twitter.com\/BHBG0eaLgv<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) September 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Additionally, I don\u2019t think the Wolves would have benefited from Leonard\u2019s quiet, keep-to-himself demeanor. <\/p>\n He leads by example, but is not the type of energy beacon that Ball is. LaMelo is not necessarily a mature, veteran leader. But he does bring a consistently energized presence, which should help keep Minnesota\u2019s morale up during the season and keep players closer. <\/p>\n Leonard\u2019s reserved fa\u00e7ade doesn\u2019t detract from the superstar that he is, but I don\u2019t believe his mentality would have fit well for a Wolves team trying to mature and have more fun along the way if that goal.<\/p>\n An extension would be concerning<\/p>\n In any package the Wolves would have sent out for Leonard, they would not have wanted the relationship to be a one-year rental. Therefore, Charania\u2019s report that the Wolves were among the teams that wanted to extend Leonard after acquiring him makes sense.<\/p>\n However, doing so would have been concerning and directly opposite to the path the Wolves have taken this summer.<\/p>\n Extending Leonard would have once again shortened Minnesota\u2019s long-term ceiling with Edwards, which has been something Connelly and his staff have been seemingly trying to avoid since they traded Towns to New York.\u00a0<\/p>\n This summer, the Wolves have shifted their focus to their 26-and-under core, which features players such as Joan Beringer (19, and will be in the rotation), Terrence Shannon Jr. (26, and will be a key part off the bench), Jaylen Clark (24, and a reliable lock-down defender), Ayo Dosunmu (26, and a highly efficient scorer), and obviously Edwards and McDaniels. Jonathan Kuminga, 23, also fits within that timeline<\/a>, but the Wolves probably would not have signed him had they traded for Leonard.<\/p>\n Bringing in Ball\u2014who is under contract for the next three seasons\u2014fits perfectly with Minnesota\u2019s timeline. Leonard, despite his continued greatness into his mid-30s, runs counter to Minnesota\u2019s youth movement.\u00a0<\/p>\n He is not what the Wolves truly needed to acquire this summer.<\/p>\n Get Timberwolves On SI straight to your inbox: sign up for our free newsletter here.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Julius](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/01m2qqyx5b15v2rd2frp.jpg\" "\\"Julius")
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