After months and months of waiting for some sort of good news regarding the status of Lonzo Ball’s knee, the Chicago Bulls apparently got that on Thursday afternoon. Ball, who has not played since the midpoint of last season due to a knee problem that has kept lingering, underwent a previously-announced “arthroscopic debridement of his left knee” on Wednesday.
Ball said his hope was that he would be able play this season, and on Thursday, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that there’s optimism about whether or not that will be the case, even if the expectation is that Ball is going to have to miss a few months while he works to rehabilitate the injury.
Sources: There is confidence in Bulls guard Lonzo Ball's ability to return this season following left knee surgery on Wednesday that doctors believe addressed the issue. Ball is expected to miss at least a few months.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 29, 2022
Both sides are expected to monitor the response over the next two weeks, and a return to play based upon Ball's rehab process.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 29, 2022
Back when the procedure was announced, the team stressed that Ball would need 4-6 weeks before he gets evaluated and decisions start being made. Ball underwent a procedure to fix a torn meniscus in January, which was the start of the issues that have kept him off the floor ever since.
Ball’s recovery from his knee problems have been defined by initial optimism followed by major setbacks, so expectations will assuredly be tempered. Regardless, Ball’s ability to initiate the team’s offense and provide much-needed perimeter defense were crucial to Chicago’s success at the start of last season. In his first season as a member of the Bulls, Ball averaged 13 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.8 steals in 34.6 minutes per game.
Source: https://uproxx.com/dimemag/bulls-optimistic-lonzo-ball-play-knee-surgery-injury-update/
