Giannis and LaMelo debut for new teams as Heat host Timberwolves

Two of the summer's biggest moves meet on the first night either team plays. Giannis Antetokounmpo makes his regular-season debut for the Heat after coming over from Milwaukee, and LaMelo Ball, traded from Charlotte to Minnesota in the offseason, plays his first game for the Timberwolves. Tipoff at Kaseya Center is 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The league is selling it as a pairing against a pairing: Giannis and Bam Adebayo against Ball and Anthony Edwards.

The history

Ball and Miami have a recent past. Ball's hard foul on Adebayo came in last season's play-in game, which Charlotte won. Asked about it before tonight's game, Erik Spoelstra said it wasn't a source of motivation. "He's not a dirty player. That was a dirty play," Spoelstra said, per the Sun Sentinel's Ira Winderman and other reporters at the session. "That's two separate things."

The debate: which duo is built to work sooner?

Miami's argument is size. Antetokounmpo and Adebayo give the Heat a pair of stars up front, and Miami had no one on ESPN's injury report Wednesday evening.

Minnesota's argument is the backcourt, with two guards who can run an offense. In a clip the NBA posted Wednesday, the Wolves' new pairing said their games "complement each other really well." The Wolves will be without guard Donte DiVincenzo, who is out with an Achilles injury.

The books lean slightly toward Miami. The Heat are 1.5-point favorites at DraftKings, and ESPN's matchup predictor gives them a 51.5% chance. Minnesota won 49 games last season to Miami's 43.

One game in October won't settle which trade worked out better. It does give both fan bases their first real evidence.