​The Timberwolves formally introduced LaMelo Ball and Josh Green on Tuesday, putting faces to a trade that took weeks to become official after it grew into a four-team deal.Minnesota sent Naz Reid, a 2033 first-round pick, three first-round pick swaps and three second-round picks to Charlotte for the two guards, while Julius Randle went to Brooklyn in a separate piece of the same move.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBall fielded a question about the Anthony Edwards partnership almost immediately, and the 24-year-old sounded like someone who has been waiting on a stage like this one.”I’ve known Anthony Edwards for a minute,” Ball said. “We’ve been talking, everybody excited, we’re ready to get to work.”Ball arrives after the best all-around season of his career, one the Hornets rewarded by trading him anyway.He averaged 20.1 points, 7.1 assists and 4.8 rebounds across 72 games, his healthiest season since 2021-22, while shooting 36.8 percent from three and finishing second in the league in made threes.His scoring dipped from the previous few years, but his turnovers fell to their lowest mark since his rookie season and he picked up All-NBA votes for the first time.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementCharlotte finished 44-38 and ninth in the Eastern Conference, a 25-win jump from the season before.The Hornets beat Miami in overtime in their Play-In opener before losing to Orlando, and within three months the front office had moved on from the face of the franchise.Minnesota went 49-33 and lost to San Antonio in six games in the second round, a series where the Spurs spent entire nights forcing the ball out of Edwards’ hands.Edwards still put up a career-high 28.8 points per game on 48.9 percent shooting, but the offense had nowhere else to turn once defenses loaded up on him.Mike Conley then left for Boston in free agency, which only made the need for a lead guard more urgent.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBall changes that math because he is the first true playmaker Edwards has ever shared a backcourt with, and the front office went all in on the trade because of how directly he answers the San Antonio series.His passing should mean easier catch-and-shoot looks for Edwards, more lobs for Rudy Gobert, and cleaner spot-up chances for Jaden McDaniels, three things Minnesota had to grind for last season.Tuesday’s press conference had been circled on calendars since the team announced the date, partly because Ball and Edwards are two of the biggest personalities in the league and partly because the fit is so obvious on paper.Both were drafted in the top three in 2020, both are 24, and both are entering their primes at the same time.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSome around the league already have the Timberwolves near the top of the Western Conference, a projection that would have sounded far-fetched a month ago.Judging by Tuesday, Ball plans on proving it right.