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The playmaker of the Chicago Bulls, Lonzo Ball, will finally return to the court. The former player of the Lakers and Pelicans mentioned that he is ready and practically has a new knee. Since January 14, 2022, Lonzo hasn’t played any NBA games, but after many surgeries and rehabilitation, he’s coming back at the start of the new season.
“I basically have a new knee, and it will be different from what I was given at the start, but I feel good. I’m healthy, I can play, and that’s the most important thing,” said Lonzo Ball.
When he signed a four-year deal with the Chicago Bulls in 2021, he was playing his best, and he was even at the top of the Eastern Conference alongside LaVine and Vucevic.
Everything fell apart after his injury, and the Bulls waited almost three years for him. Now, there’s no DeRozan or Caruso, but there are Kobe White and other young players, so the Bulls will try to do something because, according to their leaders, they are focused on winning and nothing else matters. In his career, Lonzo has played 252 games, averaging 11.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 6.2 assists.
Lonzo Ball has said that his goal is to play in the first Chicago Bulls game of the regular season. He mentioned that he will probably be ready for that. After such a long break, many are wondering if he will be the player we used to see, or if it’s hard to expect him to be the same Ball again. It’s clear that we won’t see his best right away, since he will need some time to get back into competitive shape. However, the American basketball player could still do great things.
"That's the goal, obviously we can't really tell the future, but that's the plan I'm on," Ball said, as quoted by CBS Sports.
"I think I'll be ready for the first game for sure."
Karnisovas stressed that as they enter training camp, they will need to bring Lonzo along slowly. He’s already played some five-on-five games, but they haven’t seen him go through the full training camp yet. There will be a lot of learning during camp, especially about how he can handle the daily practices. They plan to take it one step at a time.
It’s clear that this popular NBA player will need some time to show his best self. It’s important for him to have support within the club and from everyone on the team. Without the support he needs now more than ever, it’s hard to expect to see the best version of Lonzo. He’s still relatively young at 26, so things could look much better for him in the future.
Lonzo Ball on his return
In a media interview, he admitted that it’s hard to expect him to be as athletic as he once was, but he believes he can compensate for that in other ways. Lonzo doesn’t want to stress too much about these things, knowing that it could just create more problems for him. He has always been a player with great confidence, which will definitely be key to his quick recovery and return.
"Obviously I'm not going to be as athletic as I once was before, but I feel like skill and IQ can go a long way, especially in the league," Ball said.
"I'm not too worried about it, obviously my game's going to have to change a little bit, but I still know how to play the game and I think I can play at a high level."
Ball expressed that he believes he can play with anyone. He mentioned that he feels a bit older now that he's back and sees all the young players on the team. However, he’s really excited to get the new season started.
His team has made some changes that some expect could turn things in the right direction. There’s been a lot of talk about possibly letting Ball go since he’s been out for so long. The 26-year-old admits that it’s hard to draw conclusions about this situation, especially since the Bulls want to do what’s best for the team. He also mentioned Giddey, who joined the Bulls this year with serious ambitions and plans.
"I think they're trying to do what's best for the team," Ball said. " Obviously we had a lot of success when I was running point guard, getting rebounds, pushing it up, and Giddey is capable of doing the same thing. For me I look at it as like, they want to win the most games as possible, and they feel like he can do it, we feel like he can do it and that's why he's here."
English (US)