For the first time in three seasons, point guard Lonzo Ball is expected to suit up and play for the Chicago Bulls on opening night.
Ball confirmed during media day Monday that he will participate fully in training camp with the expectation of being available for the season opener Oct. 23 on the road against the New Orleans Pelicans.
“Obviously we can’t really tell the future, but that’s the plan I’m on,” Ball said. “I think I’ll be ready for the first game for sure.”
That would be Ball’s first regular-season game since Jan. 14, 2022, when he first injured the meniscus in his left knee during a game against the Golden State Warriors.
It’s undetermined, however, what Ball’s role or availability would look like. The Bulls will be wary with Ball this season, keeping him on a firm minutes restriction and holding him out of back-to-back games.
“We’re going to have to bring him up slowly,” executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas said. “We haven’t seen him go through training camp, so there’s going to be a lot of learning experience during training camp and how he can take loads in everyday practices, so we’re going to take it one step at a time.”
In the nearly three years since suffering his initial injury, Ball has undergone three procedures on his knee, including a meniscus transplant and a cartilage transplant.
He’s finally back to playing five-on-five basketball without severe pain or discomfort, which had become the norm throughout the first year of his injury.
“I pretty much have a brand-new knee,” Ball said. “So it’s always going to be a little different than what God gave me to start off with. But I’m feeling good. I’m feeling healthy enough to play. That’s all that really matters, just managing it throughout the year and being available.”
The complete overhaul of Ball’s knee is unprecedented in modern sports. No athlete has returned to a professional sports league in the U.S. after either procedure. U.S. women’s soccer star Sam Mewis attempted to come back from a knee cartilage transplant for several years before retiring in January. Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog underwent the same operation in May 2023 and has yet to return.
Ball knows the odds. And he knows the place he holds in the landscape of sports recovery.
“This is something that no one has really came back from,” he said. “I’ll be the first. It’s going to be constant communication throughout the year because this is a new project that we all have to get through together.”
As he nears a potential return, Ball doesn’t expect himself to be the same player.
“Obviously I’m not going to be as athletic as I once was before,” he said. “But I feel like skill and IQ can go a long way, especially in the league, so I’m not too worried about it. Obviously the game’s going to have to change a little bit, but I still know how to play the game at a high level.”
Coach Billy Donovan emphasized that Ball’s longevity is the team’s primary focus this season, which means the Bulls will move slower and more cautiously to avoid risks and prevent rushing him back into play.
The buy-in from the Bulls has been key for Ball, who’s eager to prove he still has a place in the NBA.
“At 26 years old, going into Year 8, I still feel like I have a lot of basketball left to play,” Ball said. “And they do as well. That’s why I’m still here.”
