On Monday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves began their preseason journey with a contest against the Milwaukee Bucks on the road. This was LaMelo Ball's first time to suit up for the Timberwolves in an official setting, and they need all the reps they can get to learn each other's tendencies as they seek to find a breakthrough in the loaded Western Conference.
Ball is going to be the lead ballhandler and playmaker for the Timberwolves, and he is expected to take Minnesota's offense that boasts weapons such as Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels to the next level. But perhaps having Ball around would bring the best out of Rudy Gobert as well.
Out of all the point guards Gobert has played with, Ball is arguably the pest passer he's ever had the privilege of teaming up with. And the two are working hard on their chemistry, as the threat of Ball's scoring paired with Gobert's lob threat should open up a ton of space for the Timberwolves offense.
Article Continues BelowLaMelo Ball and Rudy Gobert building chemistry on lobs:
"Give it to me, come up, hit, and roll again.” 🔥🗣️
(via @NBA)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 5, 2026
Gobert is not the best offensive player in the world, and having Ball around to spoon-feed him looks would make his life on that end of the floor that much easier. On the other hand, Gobert is the best defensive player Ball has ever played with, and the 25-year-old guard will have to elevate his level of play on defense to keep up with the Timberwolves.
The Timberwolves did gut their depth in the frontcourt, but this is a sign of trust in Gobert that he can handle the paint-anchoring duties all while the team around him plays some freewheeling basketball.
It will be interesting to see how Gobert acclimates to a much faster style of basketball, as he will be playing with road-runners all around him. And the early previews are at least showing that the four-time Defensive Player of the Year is more than up to the task.