Lonzo Ball has not played in each of the last two seasons for the Chicago Bulls due to a left knee that required three surgeries in two years.
In March 2023, Ball had a cartilage transplant procedure in the knee after a meniscus tear in January 2022. This surgery, in which damaged cartilage is repaired with cartilage cells from the patient’s own body, is relatively rare.
However, Ball revealed on his podcast: “The WAE Show,” who had another very rare procedure performed during that 2023 surgery. He also underwent a meniscus transplant, receiving a new meniscus from a donor to replace the one that initially tore in 2018.
“I tore it a couple more times to the point where there was nothing left – basically there wasn’t much meniscus left and it was rubbing bone on bone.” Ball. “So the cartilage was gone and the bone was damaged, so I had to get a new meniscus from a donor. I had to get a bone allograft and they also had to get some new cartilage put in.”
Ball, who will turn 27 in October, still doesn’t know if he can play with that left knee. However, earlier this month, he exercised his $21.4 million player option for next season.
That decision doesn’t put the Bulls in a great position. If Ball continues to recover from his injury but does not take the court, his contract takes up a large portion of Chicago’s 2024-25 salary cap as the team attempts to re-sign DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Williams. Trading Zach LaVine and the $138 million remaining on his contract (including a $49 million player option) could become an even bigger priority under those circumstances.
However, if Ball is unable to return and his knee injury is determined to be career-ending, the Bulls could subtract that figure from $21.4 million of its salary cap and luxury tax.
Lonzo Ball had the #Bulls playing like the best team in the world #NBA
– Incredible IQ on display
– Elite defense
– Absolute sniper of 3.
– He turned the Bulls into the Lakers of the show. pic.twitter.com/h9vLngHmWt– Diehard Chicago Bulls Fans (@DieHardCBfans) June 23, 2023
Ball believes he will play this season and estimates his knee is 70% recovered. He can run and perform basic exercises without feeling the same discomfort that he had before.
“Good enough to play, but I think he could still get better,” Ball said on the podcast. “I still have a long summer ahead of me, but I’m definitely looking forward to the future.”
He added that the plan is to be ready at the beginning of next season.
“That’s the plan I have and I haven’t had any setbacks,” Ball said. “I hope to play the first game.”