Despite his picture-perfect offensive fit alongside Anthony Edwards, one of the chief concerns about LaMelo Ball's fit with the Minnesota Timberwolves is his defense. While he's far from a positive defender, I'm not overly concerned about this flaw derailing his fit with the Wolves.
The primary reason for my confidence on this issue is that the Timberwolves have the personnel to cover up for his defensive shortcomings.
Furthermore, when you have a player who has defensive shortcomings, the question is: Can you still build a competent defense with this player on the roster? And with LaMelo, the answer to this question is definitively yes.
This past season, the Charlotte Hornets ranked 11th in defensive rating per Cleaning the Glass. Beyond that, in the 2026 portion of the season, Charlotte ranked fifth in DRTG, and LaMelo made some clear improvements with his defensive buy-in.
Look, Charles Lee is a great coach who instilled the Hornets with a defensive identity. Regardless, the Timberwolves are a far more talented defensive team led by Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels. Both players can cover up for LaMelo when he makes mistakes. And just as importantly, Ball isn't a complete defensive liability.
LaMelo Ball's defense isn't overly alarming
Given how the Hornets managed to have defensive success with LaMelo and the Wolves' superior defensive personnel, it's fair to expect that his defensive fit will be better than some are expecting.
Since Gobert's arrival in 2022, the Wolves have been a top-10 defense in every season, and there's no reason why they can't repeat this trend even with Ball.
I'm not going to sit here and argue that LaMelo is a positive defender -- that would be plainly false. His lack of strength hurts him on the ball, and he can have poor habits off the ball. Regardless, he's not a bottom-tier defender who completely ruins your defense in the mold of Trae Young.
At 6-foot-7, LaMelo is tall enough to guard opposing wings and thus can hide on lower-usage players. Additionally, he is a solid defensive playmaker who ranked in the 65th percentile for steals per 100 possessions according to Databallr. Playing alongside Gobert, Ball can gamble more often to force turnovers, which, in turn, could elevate his overall defensive impact.
Again, it's not fair to expect LaMelo to transform his subpar defensive reputation overnight, but there's enough promise for him not to be a total liability.
Now, LaMelo's arrival will force some changes for the Wolves' defense. Gobert will have even more defensive responsibilities. McDaniels will have to shift up and guard more forwards. Edwards must remain more engaged off the ball, and he'll likely also have to take on harder matchups. Ayo Dosunmu is another player who will have increased defensive responsibilities.
Thankfully, none of these propositions are overly dangerous, and Ball isn't a player who tanks a team's defense by any means. In short, while Ball's subpar defense is a valid concern, there are plenty of reasons to believe the Timberwolves can overcome this hurdle.
Add us as a preferred source on Google