Lonzo Ball Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bulls Notes: Ball, LaVine, Dragić, White, Drummond

November 4th, 2022 at 10:13pm CST by Rory Maher

Bulls head coach Billy Donovan provided a positive update on Lonzo Ball on Friday night, though he admitted that there’s still no timetable for the point guard’s return, writes K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. As Johnson notes, it has been a little more than five weeks since the team announced that Ball would be reevaluated in four-to-six weeks following another knee surgery.

“Everything is very, very optimistic right now. I think there are things that he is able to do that he feels a lot freer that he did prior to the surgery,” Donovan said. “The biggest part was allowing the incision inside of his knee to heal. And then he started to do some things. He has done some running on a treadmill in the water, which is a positive sign. There are things he’s doing that he wasn’t able to do.

“Don’t have any timeline on when he’ll really be able to ramp up, but things have progressed. And everything that I’ve gotten from the medical guys has been positive. Obviously, he’s a ways away from running and cutting and doing all those things. But there is optimism that this hopefully has helped him.”

According to Johnson, Donovan said Ball’s discomfort has eased, but until he begins running and cutting again, the team won’t really know where he stands as far as a potential timetable, since Ball will still need to work on conditioning after missing so much time. He last played on January 14.

Ball’s knee issues date back to a torn meniscus that limited him to just 35 games last season. He was originally projected to return a few weeks after the surgery, but a bone bruise disrupted his rehab process.

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Two-time All-Star Zach LaVine (knee) was able to play his third game in four nights in Friday’s loss to the Celtics, which is a positive development. However, it appears as though he’s still trying to regain his finishing ability near the basket, with Johnson noting (via Twitter) that LaVine took exclusively jump shots in the first half. When Johnson (Twitter link) asked LaVine after the game if he felt he had his normal explosion on drives, LaVine said he doesn’t, but he’s not worried about it. “Obviously, I’m not all the way back yet. I feel that. I’m not going to lie. But it’s coming. I’m not scared or anything like that. It’s seven games in. I feel fine,” he said.
Veteran point guard Goran Dragić, a free agent addition over the summer, says he loves his fit with the Bulls after a tumultuous ’21/22 season. “I enjoy it so much here. You get to a new team, new city, new people, and it’s such a nice vibe for me,” Dragić told Johnson in an interview for NBC Sports Chicago. “Good communication with Billy, who is a great coach. I just feel happy. I think that’s the most important thing, especially at the end of your career. That you’re productive and happy.” The 36-year-old also said he’d consider continuing his career beyond this season as long as he’s healthy.
In addition to Ball, Donovan also provided updates on guard Coby White (thigh) and center Andre Drummond (shoulder sprain), who remain sidelined. According to Johnson (Twitter link), Donovan said White has “a significant deep thigh contusion” and is still in a lot of pain, while Drummond is having difficult raising his arm above his head. He didn’t suffer a torn labrum or dislocation like the team feared he might have, but he’s not close to returning to action.

Bulls Notes: Bench, Drummond, Ball, Williams, DeRozan

October 27th, 2022 at 10:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls‘ bench came up big again on Wednesday in the team’s win over Indiana, scoring a season-high 43 points, according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Alex Caruso, Goran Dragic, Andre Drummond, Javonte Green, Derrick Jones, and Coby White have all been regular contributors outside of the starting five, with the team frequently running out lineups that feature Zach LaVine and four reserves.

On Wednesday, Dragic was a game-high plus-19, while Caruso (+18), Drummond (+16), and Jones (+16) were right behind him. LaVine (+12), who saw action with those second units, was the only starter who had a positive rating.

“We mesh really well because everybody does what they do at a high level. And I think it complements each other really well,” Caruso said. “Drum gives us that inside presence—great screener, great rebounder, rim protection. Me on the outside kind of stirring everybody up on defense whether it’s Woo (Green) or D.J. helping out with the four-man doing the same thing. And then any of the guards that are in with us, whether it’s Coby, Goran or Zach, doing a good job making decisive decisions.”

Of the Bulls’ lineups that have played at least 10 minutes so far this season, none have performed better than the five-man group of Caruso, Dragic, LaVine, Jones, and Drummond, which has outscored opponents 42-21 in 17 minutes of play.

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Drummond, who referred to Chicago’s second unit as “pretty much a starting lineup,” also dubbed himself “the best rebounder of the past century,” Johnson writes for NBC Sports Chicago. And, as Johnson points out, Drummond may have a statistical case for that title, given that his career average of 13.2 rebounds per game ranks first among players since 2000, as does his 24.68% rebounding percentage. The big man is averaging 9.4 RPG this season despite playing just 15.6 MPG.
It has been four weeks since the Bulls announced they would reevaluate Lonzo Ball in four-to-six weeks following his knee surgery, but head coach Billy Donovan didn’t have any concrete updates on Wednesday, says Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “I have not heard anything as of yet with that,” Donovan said. “He’s doing good. He feels like he’s progressing. He’s pretty optimistic and positive about everything. I think the biggest thing with the surgery is the incision healing in order to continue to make progress, and I just don’t know how far along he is in that process.”
While Patrick Williams‘ inconsistent start to the season has raised questions about his spot in the starting lineup, it doesn’t sound like Donovan intends to move him to the bench anytime soon, Cowley writes in another Sun-Times story. “I do think that with it being early in the season, taking four or five games and saying, ‘OK, we’re scrapping this,’ you never get a chance to see and maybe get enough information to make those decisions,” Donovan said.
In a conversation with David Aldridge of The Athletic, Bulls star DeMar DeRozan spoke about embracing his role as a veteran mentor and enjoying a strong second act to his NBA career after being devastated by the trade that sent him to San Antonio following nine seasons in Toronto. “It’s definitely gratifying from the standpoint that I hope I can be an inspiration for guys who lose confidence in themselves. Or they hit a rock in the road, and (are) struggling to figure it out,” DeRozan said. “There’s always a way. You can’t get down on yourself mentally, you can’t doubt yourself. You can’t get caught up into what everybody else may say and the expectations they put on you. As long as you have the ultimate belief in you and your work ethic, that’s the only thing that matters, that will pay off.”

Central Notes: Ball, Clarkson, Bogdanovic, Livers, Vucevic, Caruso

September 29th, 2022 at 10:50am CST by Dana Gauruder

There’s confidence that Bulls point guard Lonzo Ball will return at some point this season, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Ball underwent another left knee surgery on Wednesday and doctors are optimistic the issue has been fully addressed. However, he’s going to be out a number of months, Charania adds.

Ball was still unable to “run or jump” entering training camp despite a lengthy rehab from two previous procedures this year.

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The Bucks showed a lot of interest in trading for the Jazz‘s Jordan Clarkson but the Jazz balked at Milwaukee’s proposal, Tony Jones of The Athletic said on the Bill Riley Show podcast (hat tip to HoopsHype). Utah was uninterested at taking back George Hill‘s contract, which Jones described as a non-starter in trade discussions. One of the league’s top scoring reserves, Clarkson averaged 16 points last season. He has two years left on his four-year, $51.52MM contract. Hill has an expiring $4MM contract, so Milwaukee would have still needed to send out more salary in a potential trade.
The Lakers and Suns were among the teams reportedly pursuing Bojan Bogdanovic but he wound up getting traded to the Pistons. The former Jazz forward says he wasn’t concerned where he ended up, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. “I didn’t have any preference,” Bogdanovic said. “There’s a lot of rumors. Who knows if that’s true or not? I’m super happy and excited to be part of the Pistons.”
Pistons forward Isaiah Livers wound up playing 19 games during his rookie season after recovering from a foot injury. He’s aiming to become a regular part of the rotation this season, he told James Edwards III of The Athletic. “I wanted to build off those last 19, 20 games,” the 2021 second-round pick said. “Coaches and everyone seemed to love the way that I was playing. It was working effectively.”
There was heavy speculation that Bulls center Nikola Vucevic would be part of a package to acquire Rudy Gobert during the offseason. Vucevic had serious doubts that would happen and was proven correct when Gobert was dealt to Minnesota, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. “Rumors are a part of what we do,’’ said Vucevic, who is on an expiring contract. “Whether they’re true or not, it’s out of my control. I focus on what I can control, and, in the end, I had some fun with [the Jazz rumors]. At no point did I feel it was going to happen.’’
Bulls guard Alex Caruso is one of the candidates to replace Ball in the starting lineup as he mends from his latest knee surgery, but that’s not Caruso’s focus, Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic writes. “It won’t be a conversation I’ll have with Billy (Donovan). He might have it with me depending on what we need,” Caruso said. “But I’ve always been team-first trying to win games. If that’s me starting basketball games then that’s what we’ll do. If that’s me coming off the bench, that’s fine too. I’ve always been I’d rather finish games than start games.

Central Notes: Ball, LaVine, Nwora, Pistons

September 27th, 2022 at 1:47pm CST by Luke Adams

Bulls guard Lonzo Ball is scheduled to undergo another procedure on his troublesome left knee on Wednesday after spending the entire offseason trying to recover from the injury without surgery. Speaking on Tuesday to reporters, Ball discussed the decision to go back under the knife, explaining that the knee continues to bother him even when he’s doing day-to-day activities like walking up the stairs.

“Literally, I really can’t run. I can’t run or jump. There’s a range from, like, 30 to 60 degrees when my knee is bent that I have no force and I can’t catch myself. Until I can do those things I can’t play,” Ball said, per Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago. “I did rehab, it was getting better, but it was not to a point where I could get out there and run full speed or jump. So surgery is the next step.”

The injury has bothered Ball for far longer than he or the Bulls expected, with the point guard suggesting on Tuesday that his condition and his symptoms have left his doctors “a little surprised.” Ball is hopeful that Wednesday’s procedure will shed more light on the issue.

“From my understanding they’re going in there to see what it is because it’s not necessarily showing up on the MRI,” Ball said. “But it’s clear that there’s something there that’s not right. So they’re going to go in, look at it, and whatever needs to be done is going to be done.”

As Schaefer writes in a separate NBC Sports Chicago story, Bulls president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said on Monday that a recovery timeline for Ball remains unknown, and that the four-to-six week timeline the team announced last week is just for a reevaluation — the 24-year-old is not expected to be ready to return at that point.

Ominously, when asked on Tuesday if he needs to view Ball’s absence as a potential season-long issue, head coach Billy Donovan replied, “I think you have to” (Twitter link via Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic). That could just be a matter of Donovan preparing for a worse-case scenario, but it doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.

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While Ball’s knee injury continues to be a problem, fellow Bulls guard Zach LaVine said that his own knee – which he underwent arthroscopic surgery on in the spring – feels “really good.” Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times has the story and the quotes from LaVine.
Playing strong defense will be crucial for Jordan Nwora as he looks to earn a regular spot in the Bucks‘ rotation this season, head coach Mike Budenholzer said on Monday (link via Eric Nehm of The Athletic). “He’s maturing and he understands it’s a big priority for us for him to get on the court, for him to help us,” Budenholzer said. “Everybody’s gotta be able to defend at a high level. He’s gotta prove it now, every day in camp, and he’s off to a good start.”
Nwora, who just re-signed with the Bucks on a two-year deal, will have guaranteed base salaries of $2.8MM and $3MM on his new deal, with additional bonuses of $200K per year if the team gets to the second round of the playoffs, reports ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter links). As Nehm relays, Nwora referred to restricted free agency as “kind of a blessing and curse” and praised the job his agent and the front office did to make a deal.
The Pistons made a series of intriguing roster additions this summer, drafting Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren and trading for Bojan Bogdanovic. But in their comments to the media on Monday, general manager Troy Weaver and head coach Dwane Casey both stressed the importance of “internal growth,” writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. “We’re hoping that our players in-house can continue to grow and develop at a pace that allows us to push and grow and compete, and then contend the way we want to,” Weaver said.

Lonzo Ball To Miss At Least 4-6 Weeks Following Procedure on Left Knee

September 21st, 2022 at 4:08pm CST by Arthur Hill

Bulls guard Lonzo Ball will undergo an arthroscopic debridement of his left knee, the team announced on Twitter.

The procedure is scheduled for September 28 in Los Angeles, and Ball’s condition will be reevaluated in four to six weeks. Debridement involves removing foreign objects or damaged/dead tissue from a wound.

A report earlier this month indicated that Ball was likely to miss training camp due to persistent pain in the knee, which was surgically repaired in January. He and the Bulls have decided to address the problem with a surgical procedure, even though his prognosis ensures he will miss the start of the regular season.

Ball’s knee issues date back to a torn meniscus that limited him to just 35 games last season. He was originally projected to return a few weeks after the surgery, but a bone bruise disrupted his rehab process.

ESPN recently reported that Ball has visited “multiple specialists” in an attempt to figure out what’s causing the discomfort in his knee and to explore possible treatments. A source told ESPN that the knee is “structurally sound,” but the pain hasn’t subsided after a summer of rest and rehab.

Before the injury, Ball played an important role in leading the Bulls’ early-season charge. He averaged 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists while providing a strong defensive presence in Chicago’s backcourt.

Central Notes: Bagley, Knox, Hayes, Pacers, Ball, Pistons

September 19th, 2022 at 9:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Breakout seasons from Marvin Bagley III, Kevin Knox and Killian Hayes would go a long way toward a much improved season for the Pistons, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com writes. All three lottery picks have yet to fulfill their promise but could become part of the team’s core group if they establish a firm foothold in the NBA this season.

Bagley was re-signed on a three-year, $37MM deal this summer, while Knox received a two-year, $6MM contract after passing through two organizations. Hayes is entering his third year with the Pistons and projects as the second-unit floor leader.

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The Pacers announced the signing of forwards James Johnson and Bennie Boatwright and guards David Stockton and Gabe York on Friday. Hoops Rumors has learned Johnson was signed to an Exhibit 9 contract while Boatwright, Stockton and York signed Exhibit 10 deals. An Exhibit 9 contract must be for one season and for a minimum salary. Generally speaking, if a player only receives an Exhibit 9 clause and not an Exhibit 10, it signals he won’t be joining the team’s G League affiliate if he’s waived before the season begins. Johnson spent most of last season in Brooklyn, averaging 5.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.1 APG in 62 appearances (19.2 MPG).
Lonzo Ball‘s recovery from his persistent knee issues remains fluid, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago writes. The reason the Bulls haven’t officially put a timeline on Ball’s return is that they don’t really know when he’ll be back. Some days when Ball works out, everything seems fine. Other times, the knee flares up again. Ball, who hasn’t played since January, is doubtful for the start of the season.
The Athletic’s Zach Harper gives the Pistons a B-plus grade for their offseason maneuvers. Adding point guard Jaden Ivey with their lottery pick, then trading for another to snare center Jalen Duren were the highlights of their offseason moves, with only the Knox addition ranking as a head-scratcher, according to Harper.

Central Notes: Hayes, Ball, Bucks, G League Trade

September 17th, 2022 at 9:36pm CST by Arthur Hill

Killian Hayes has to make progress as a scorer to show the Pistons he should be part of their long-term plans, writes James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. After injuries limited him to 26 games as a rookie, Hayes bounced back to play in 66 last season, showing the defensive and passing skills that made him the No. 7 overall pick in 2020.

However, his scoring development remained stagnant as he averaged 6.9 PPG in 25 minutes per night while shooting 38.3% from the field and 26.3% from three-point range. Edwards believes Hayes needs to become more aggressive in getting to the basket, noting that he made 74% of his attempts at the rim last season, but that only accounted for 16% of his shots.

Edwards poses questions involving other Pistons players, asking whether Isaiah Stewart has become a legitimate three-point shooter, whether Saddiq Bey can balance his performance from his first two seasons and whether Saben Lee can find a way to stand out on a roster loaded with guards.

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Lonzo Ball tops a list of Bulls players with the most to prove compiled by Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic. Ball may be held out through the start of the regular season because of pain in his surgically repaired left knee. The Bulls insist the knee is structurally sound, but his availability will play a massive role in where the team finishes in the Eastern Conference. Mayberry adds that the team also needs a bounce-back performance from center Nikola Vucevic, who’s heading into a contract year.
Unlike most of their competitors in the East, the Bucks didn’t make major changes this offseason and can rely on continuity as they make a run at another NBA title, per Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype. Milwaukee still has the defensive foundation to contend for a championship, Gozlan adds, and Giannis Antetokounmpo remains one of the best players in the world. One financial concern that Gozlan points out is that the Bucks appear destined for the repeater tax next season, while Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez will both become unrestricted free agents in July if they don’t receive extensions.
In a press release, the Cleveland Charge – The Cavaliers‘ G League affiliate – announced the trade of Norvel Pelle and the Charge’s second-round pick to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants (the Pacers‘ affiliate) in exchange for Nate Hinton.

Central Notes: Connaughton, Ball, Cunningham

September 13th, 2022 at 9:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pat Connaughton believes he could have gotten more money in free agency but he wanted to stay with the Bucks. That’s why he exercised his contract option this summer before signing an extension, Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes.

“I think I have the opportunity to potentially make a little bit more elsewhere, but for me, to prolong my career, how do you keep yourself in a position where they value what I do? I value winning,” he said. “I value my teammates and the culture that we’ve built, the organization, the management, the ownership, all of it.”

Connaughton, who received a three-year extension worth $28.3MM in July, added that the team is hungry after getting bounced in the second round of the playoffs by the Celtics last season.

“I think we have a group of guys that are excited to get back out there and excited to play with a chip on our shoulder and not have that same taste in our mouths,” he said. “It’s one of those things where I’ll never forget sitting in Boston after Game 7. You use that as fuel, you use that as hunger and you take a slow, methodical approach to this offseason to making sure you’re putting yourself in the best position to come out on top again.”

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The Bulls are expected to be without their starting point guard, Lonzo Ball, in the early portion of the season due to lingering pain in his surgically repaired left knee. ESPN’s Jamal Collier takes an in-depth look at Ball’s knee issues. Ball hasn’t taken the court since mid-January after originally receiving a projected recovery timeline of eight weeks.
The biggest question regarding Pistons guard Cade Cunningham this season is whether he can develop a consistent 3-point shot, James Edwards III of The Athletic opines. Edwards also considers what second-year forward Isaiah Livers and lottery picks Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren must prove in order for Detroit to be a surprise team this season.
In case you missed it, the Pistons officially signed Micah Potter to an Exhibit 10 contract.

Bulls Notes: Ball, Williams, Caruso, Dosunmu

September 3rd, 2022 at 10:06am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Bulls are playing the long game with Lonzo Ball and his health, according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.

A report surfaced on Friday that Ball is expected to miss training camp and won’t be ready to go for the season opener.

However, Ball’s situation may not be as ominous as that sounds, Johnson writes. The team has worked in concert with Ball’s specialists this offseason and remain confident his left knee will continue to improve. The knee itself is reportedly structurally sound but the bone bruise he suffered, which occurred before his meniscus tear in January, is what continues to gives Ball pain.

With Goran Dragić, Coby White, Alex Caruso, Ayo Dosunmu and rookie Dalen Terry on the roster, Chicago has enough depth to take a cautious approach with Ball.

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The team is banking on a big jump from Patrick Williams, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. Williams must pump up his scoring and rebounding numbers while hounding the opposing team’s best forward on the defensive end. The No. 4 pick in the 2020 draft, who missed most of last season due to a wrist injury, has been busy this offseason playing in Pro-Ams and some pick-up games against NBA stars.
Injuries took a toll on the team last season, Caruso admits in an interview with Ethan Fuller of Basketball News. “Obviously, we have a little bit of bad luck with injuries last year. That doesn’t help,” Caruso said. “I think in the beginning of the year, we were first in the East, we had a great defensive rating [and the] offense was doing everything they needed to do as far as moving the ball, creating open shots. And then, through a little bit of adversity in the year, we dropped a little bit of discipline in certain areas of the game.
In the same piece, Caruso praises Dosunmu for the way he held his own defensively in his rookie campaign. “Ayo was, basically all last year, just playing off the feel,” Caruso said. “Your first year in the league, you don’t understand concepts really. You don’t understand coverages. You’re seeing guys play, and you’re playing against guys for the first time. You’re seeing their best moves for the first time; they’re probably going to beat you most of the time. So for him to be able to compete the way he did last year on defense is a great sign for a guy in his first year.”

Lonzo Ball Expected To Miss Camp, Doubtful For Start Of Season

September 2nd, 2022 at 5:11pm CST by Rory Maher

Bulls guard Lonzo Ball continues to experience pain and discomfort in his surgically repaired left knee and is expected to miss training camp, sources tell Jamal Collier and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. According to ESPN’s duo, he’s also considered doubtful for the start of the 2022/23 regular season, which begins on October 18.

Ball had surgery in January for a torn meniscus and was originally expected to return before the end of last season. However, a bone bruise interfered with his rehab process, and unfortunately it appears as though it might still be impacting his recovery.

According to ESPN’s duo, Ball has seen “multiple specialists” in an effort to determine the cause of the lingering pain and discomfort, and to seek possible treatments. A source tells Collier and Shelburne that Ball’s knee is “structurally sound,” but he continued to struggle with the knee this summer while rehabbing in Los Angeles.

Ball will be evaluated by team doctors in Chicago next week, per ESPN.

The Bulls have been vague regarding Ball’s status throughout the offseason, with coach Billy Donovan and executive VP of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas saying that he was “progressing” back in July, but they did concede that his recovery was going slower than they’d hoped, and evidently that’s still the case.

K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago recently said on the Bulls Talk podcast that the team appeared to be a bit more optimistic about the 24-year-old lately, though he cautioned that the situation remained fluid.

“I’m not saying that means he’s out there opening night. I’m not saying he’s playing all 82,” Johnson said. “What I’m saying is the skepticism that was earlier in the offseason has moved a little bit toward the optimism side.”

It sounds as though Johnson’s report is right on the money, with Ball’s status for the season opener very much in jeopardy.

Ball had a major impact on the Bulls when he was healthy last season, averaging 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.8 steals while shooting 42.3% from three-point range and playing strong defense in 35 games (34.6 minutes).

As Collier and Shelburne note, the Bulls were 27-13 when Ball played his last game on January 14, but faltered down the stretch, going just 19-23 the rest of the way before losing their first-round playoff series against Milwaukee.