Finch: LaMelo Must Learn to Play With Gobert
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch says LaMelo Ball must adapt to a rim-protecting partner like Gobert and improve shot selection and finishing at the rim.
Chris Finch has set out the adjustment Lamelo Ball needs to make after joining Minnesota, pointing first to the defensive end.
"We need Lamelo to understand how everything works with us and how important it is to act without delay," Finch said.
The Timberwolves coach singled out the pick-and-roll partnership with Rudy Gobert as the priority.
"Lamelo has never played with a specialist like this at protecting the rim. So he'll have to learn how to play with a partner like that too," Finch said.
On offence, Finch wants better shot selection and more of Ball finishing plays himself rather than always looking to pass.
"If you want to be a good shooter, the first thing you need to do is get rid of bad shots. He sometimes takes shots like that — and he's capable of making them. But I think he's relied on that too much. The second thing is finishing. It seems to me that often he goes into the paint intending to pass, because he's an elite passer. But we want him to pay more attention to finishing, and to accept contact a bit more aggressively when he drives to the basket," Finch added.
Finch made the comments two days after saying Minnesota had skipped adding veterans over the summer and instead handed control of the reshaped roster to Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels.
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