Timberwolves HC Chris Finch Takes Subtle Jabs at Hornets After LaMelo Ball Trade

Can LaMelo Ball be a winning player? It's a question that haunted the Charlotte Hornets point guard during his tenure with the team. It may ultimately be a reason the Hornets decided to sell high and trade him to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

If you ask Chris Finch, Ball's new head coach, that is a two-way street. The Hornets were awful for much of Ball's tenure, and Finch believes that the fault for that should not necessarily be placed on the player.

He said on a Bleacher Report podcast, “I know he’s really excited to join a team that is poised to play a lot of meaningful basketball." This is obviously a reference to the fact that the Timberwolves have won 78 more games since Ball and his new teammate, Anthony Edwards, were drafted.

Finch also said a few things that could be construed as shots at the Hornets' front office, too. "We love his energy. I love his style of play. I think the connectivity he has with his teammates... If you look at the numbers, there’s no denying that everybody’s productivity goes up when he’s on the floor."

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) drives past Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Though GM Jeff Peterson didn't state as much openly, it seems pretty clear that the Hornets didn't want to build around Ball's style of play, but Finch and the Timberwolves do. Obviously, there's a lot more nuance to this entire trade, but the Hornets didn't believe in Ball long-term. The Wolves, particularly Finch, do.

The Hornets have long been a laughingstock to the wider NBA, so this perhaps isn't much of a surprise. They have been a punching bag, with the third-fewest wins since the 2017-18 season.

But after finally putting together a really good year and seemingly having a successful future locked in, those days were thought to be over. Perhaps they are, and Finch's words will be seen as a failed criticism of a team that made a smart move to get better in the future (time will tell on that one).

Either way, the Hornets have a Herculean task replacing Ball, and the Timberwolves are more than pleased that they were able to get the All-Star point guard to pair with the player that was drafted just two spots ahead of him in 2020.

It was a controversial move, and until the results of this trade are easily seen, the Hornets can expect more comments like this one.

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