The Chicago Bulls will have to wait until next season to see their point guard Lonzo Ball back in action. The team officially announced that Ball had been ruled out for the remainder of 2022-23 campaign while recovering from a knee injury.
Ball underwent knee surgery in January 2022 to repair a meniscus tear and was initially expected to get back to action in five weeks. However, the recovery didn’t go as planned, forcing the 25-year-old player to miss the rest of 2021-22 and have another procedure in the summer.
While Ball attempted to return to basketball actions in recent weeks, he couldn’t do so without being pain-free. The Bulls ended up deciding to allow him more time to recover, hoping he could be ready for the start of the next season.
“Despite making significant increases in strength and function over the past several months, Bulls guard Lonzo Ball continues to experience performance-limiting discomfort during participation in high-level basketball-related activities,” said Bulls executive vice president Arturas Karnisovas in a statement shared with the media.
Lonzo Ball joined the Bulls in the summer of 2021 in a sign-and-trade deal with the New Orleans Pelicans. Ball played some of his best basketball as a pro in the first part of the 2021-22 season, averaging 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 5.1 assists before going down with an injury.
The Bulls are expected to add free agent guard Patrick Beverley in the upcoming days as a way to bolster their guard depth. They currently have 2019’s first-round pick Coby White and veteran Goran Dragic manning the position.
