Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball have had to make their presence felt in the Minnesota Timberwolves’ efforts to sign LeBron James.
The Timberwolves are among the five teams reportedly on James’ offseason shortlist, alongside the 76ers, Cavaliers, Heat, and Warriors.
Minnesota feels like a less likely destination for the 41-year-old superstar than the other four teams in the running, but just having a shot has made the Wolves deputize their star backcourt as recruitment agents.
LeBron James is being recruited directly by Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball
The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski has revealed that both Edwards and LaMelo have spoken to James directly in an attempt to recruit him to their franchise.
“Anthony Edwards has been directly involved with LeBron in this process; he’s made phone calls with LeBron. LaMelo Ball had a conversation with LeBron.”
Edwards revealed during the Summer League that he hadn’t directly reached out to LeBron, but this report contradicts that. Whether Edwards reached out before or after those comments is unknown.
James is already being recruited primarily by the other players on his interested teams, such as by Steph Curry and Draymond Green on the Warriors or the trio of Maxey, Brown, and Embiid on the 76ers.
Given Edwards and James’ familiarity with each other as Olympic teammates, maybe these efforts can go a long way in making the Timberwolves a viable landing spot for LeBron.
The Timberwolves need LeBron James
The franchise isn’t recruiting James just to have the 41-year-old superstar sell jerseys for them and bring his commercial appeal to the small-market franchise.
The team is one of the dark horse contenders in the West and has a clear hole for James to fill at starting power forward with Julius Randle and Naz Reid gone.
James would play an actual role while having both sides of the ball covered through his teammates.
Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels are two of the best defenders in the NBA, while Ant and LaMelo promise to be an electric offensive duo.
LeBron has to fill in the gaps on a team that can share his load on both ends. There might not be a better basketball fit, which is why they’ve made the final five.
It’s just a question of whether having a pure opportunity to win a title will outweigh any personal feelings about returning to Cleveland or Miami, or teaming up with close friends in Golden State.
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