Lonzo Ball hits two-year mark since last NBA game as he remains hopeful to return next season

This past Sunday marked two years since the last time we saw Lonzo Ball play in an NBA contest. Back when he was healthy, the injured star led the Bulls to a 27-13 record after his first 40 games of that 2021/22 campaign, before that nightmare game in which they lost to the Golden State Warriors. Since then, Chicago is 79-88 in regular season. 

It’s very hard to not imagine the potential of placing the 26-year-old next to Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vučević. Ball’s ability to dribble up the court, find powerful passes and hit accurate three-pointers would be an ideal fit alongside Chicago’s current offensive trio.

On the defensive side of the court, Lonzo used to pair up perfectly with guard Alex Caruso. Their coach Billy Donovan can’t wait to have him back. “The optimistic part wants to believe he’s going to get back because you see his attitude every day,” he said this weekend. “You want it for him.”

Lonzo Ball played in his last NBA game two years ago today on January 14, 2022.

Lonzo, who is ruled out for the 2023-24 NBA season with continuous knee injuries & surgeries, began running again this month.

Get well soon, Lonzo! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/tBxDlHX0rT

— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) January 15, 2024

The injured star has been through three surgeries on his left knee since January 2022, his latest was 10 months ago involving a cartilage transplant.

During the Bulls’ first media day back in October, Lonzo appeared very optimistic when talking about his recovery. “I definitely plan on playing again,” he said. “After surgery three, I feel like it’s going well so far, no setbacks. So for me it’s just keep my head up, just keep doing the work.”

“Rehab has been long. It feels like every day is almost the same. But I’m getting better each week and that’s all I can ask for. It feels good to be around the guys. You can feel a new energy in the building, at least coming from my point of view,” Ball shared. “The surgery was a really big surgery. We were all together and came together with a plan moving forward. It’s not really a set timeline. But I pretty much have this whole year to get as healthy as possible and be ready to go next season.”

Even though the Chicago organization has discarded the possibility of counting on Lonzo’s services this season, coach Donovan assures that his latest procedure has helped the player live without pain, despite the fact that he hasn’t started running on court yet.

Ball is expected to start running this month and should be healthy by this upcoming summer

Donovan also anticipated that Lonzo is expected to begin running this month of January, as his team prepares to meet up with their injured star during the Bulls’ four-day trip to Los Angeles, which is where the player has been rehabilitating.

“The biggest thing we’ve tried to do is make sure he’s in the right hands to go through the rehab and recover and try to get as close to fully healthy as he possibly can,” the Chicago trainer explained. “At some point when he’s cleared to play and this continues to move in the right direction, he’s going to need some time. I am hopeful and optimistic that he’ll be back with us.”

Ball, who owns a $21.4 million player option for next season, is expected to be healthy by this upcoming summer. The Bulls’ $10.2 million disabled player exception for Lonzo expires on March 10.

“But let’s say he gets cleared to play in the summertime and it’s not during the season when he can have game activity. Maybe he can play pickup ball, but that’s probably not the same after missing two-and-a-half years of actual play,” Donovan added.