Chicago Bulls believe Lonzo Ball's career is over

[Chuck Everett]

It seems to me from his first procedure, he got an infection or something, because to go from a meniscus tear to possible knee replacement is kind of unbelievable.

[Grahf]

I watched a ton of him when he played for UCLA, as he was one of the big four at the top of that draft, and the Celtics had Brooklyn's pick. He was both a great college player and incredibly fun to watch, like prime Jason Kidd, and a part of me hoped the C's would take him.

I have no idea why he never became a star. But the funny thing about that draft is that the top four guys (Fultz, Ball, Josh Jackson, Jayson Tatum) were all supposedly can't miss future all-stars, and Tatum was considered by most pundits/fans to be the weakest of the four.

[Kawaii Leonard]

He made a giant leap especially with fixing his shooting mechanics. Was soon to be an all defensive corner piece. This is very sad if true but I still believe he can bounce back to be an effective player. He’s a smart player that doesn’t overly rely on athleticism alone and still young.

[W_HAMILTON]

January 2022 tears his meniscus, gets first surgery and is expected to return in 6 to 8 weeks.

April 6 2022 ruled out for the rest of the season, due to knee pain.

September 2022 has his second surgery, an arthroscopic procedure to clear debris from his knee. Expected to miss at least a few months.

February 2023 ruled out for the rest of the season after playing 0 games.

March 16th 2023 has 3rd surgery, a cartilage transplant in an attempt to avoid a total knee replacement. Expected to miss a majority of the upcoming season.

May 28th 2023 Bulls think his basketball career is over.

Thanks for that.

I think what I'm missing is why the jump to thinking he won't ever be able to play again.

Was his initial injury just that significant? Are his problems somewhat hereditary, like some other players that were inevitably forced to retire early?

Is it because he continued to have serious pain, regardless of what surgical steps they have taken to address it?

There isn't some worry of a "surgery gone bad" or incorrect diagnosis here, is there? I don't think I've read anything about that, but I'm still just missing out on how he goes from missing even a season or two to never playing again. That is a drastic jump and one I wasn't expecting, even with him missing so much time lately...

[Kawaii Leonard]

January 2022 tears his meniscus, gets first surgery and is expected to return in 6 to 8 weeks.

April 6 2022 ruled out for the rest of the season, due to knee pain.

September 2022 has his second surgery, an arthroscopic procedure to clear debris from his knee. Expected to miss at least a few months.

February 2023 ruled out for the rest of the season after playing 0 games.

March 16th 2023 has 3rd surgery, a cartilage transplant in an attempt to avoid a total knee replacement. Expected to miss a majority of the upcoming season.

May 28th 2023 Bulls think his basketball career is over.

Thanks for that.

I think what I'm missing is why the jump to thinking he won't ever be able to play again.

Was his initial injury just that significant? Are his problems somewhat hereditary, like some other players that were inevitably forced to retire early?

Is it because he continued to have serious pain, regardless of what surgical steps they have taken to address it?

There isn't some worry of a "surgery gone bad" or incorrect diagnosis here, is there? I don't think I've read anything about that, but I'm still just missing out on how he goes from missing even a season or two to never playing again. That is a drastic jump and one I wasn't expecting, even with him missing so much time lately...

I’m sorry but bro your sig some very special people on here

[JujitsuFlip]

January 2022 tears his meniscus, gets first surgery and is expected to return in 6 to 8 weeks.

April 6 2022 ruled out for the rest of the season, due to knee pain.

September 2022 has his second surgery, an arthroscopic procedure to clear debris from his knee. Expected to miss at least a few months.

February 2023 ruled out for the rest of the season after playing 0 games.

March 16th 2023 has 3rd surgery, a cartilage transplant in an attempt to avoid a total knee replacement. Expected to miss a majority of the upcoming season.

May 28th 2023 Bulls think his basketball career is over.

Thanks for that.

I think what I'm missing is why the jump to thinking he won't ever be able to play again.

Was his initial injury just that significant? Are his problems somewhat hereditary, like some other players that were inevitably forced to retire early?

Is it because he continued to have serious pain, regardless of what surgical steps they have taken to address it?

There isn't some worry of a "surgery gone bad" or incorrect diagnosis here, is there? I don't think I've read anything about that, but I'm still just missing out on how he goes from missing even a season or two to never playing again. That is a drastic jump and one I wasn't expecting, even with him missing so much time lately...

Yeah, it's the pain thing. No matter what they do, he still has pain.

I think the line of thinking for his career is that the cartilage transplant has only been around since 2016, so if it too fails to get rid of the pain, then he has to have knee replacement surgery which pretty much guarantees his career is over.

[Clav]

There might be some level of injury insurance at play here, not sure how it all is divided out. But honestly, you really shouldn't feel bad for the owners, they are in this game for a reason, to make money, and it's a high-risk gamble every time you own an NBA team, they know it. They aren't like us, most are billionaires, and Reisndorf has a NW or +2B.

I don't think its been much of a gamble at all for the last 40 years. Unless a team spends itself into oblivion it will most likely make a pretty good profit and when was the last time a team sold for less than it was bought for? Maybe never? For the most part the value of nba teams has gone nothing but up for 40 straight years.

You actually have a good point. I agree with that. I meant it more as though... Let me rephrase --- it's never guaranteed that a player's contract will meet that expectation (if that's the gamble). Yes, NBA franchises are gaining value.

[durden_tyler]

Unfortunate. i know the Ball family is one of the players who was exposed very early (meaning rigorous training) right? Any study that to a point, it's unhealthy for the human body to be exposed that early and often?

[Mr B]

I can't remember a gifted player degenerating so quickly since D Rose.

This situation reminds more of Brandon Roy. Very good player but you can only play so long when you’re playing with bone on bone in your knee.

[pipfan]

Ball and Caruso were SO fun to watch on D-they would just swallow teams up. His injury is the main reason the Bulls are so mediocre right now-I think he would qualify as a "superstar role player".

Hopefully the Bulls can get his contract removed from their cap at least. Ball gets paid, and the team can save valuable money (since we won't go into the tax).

MAYBE this will finally convince AKME to deal DDR/Lavine/Caruso and rebuild?

[Rainwater]

I feel terrible for the owners. He's on the hook for tens of millions of dollars for Lonzo to do absolutely nothing but sit at home. It sucks for Lonzo too, I'm sure he'd rather be playing and I feel a little for him, but these guaranteed contracts really suck for the owners who already have to overpay players due to the CBA

Why would you feel bad for the owners? Unless the league absolutely falls apart (which is far from the case for the NBA), the few millions they lose by paying Ball to sit around is small compared to the billions they will make when they eventually decide to sell the team. For example, the owner of the Bulls, Jerry Reinsdorf, bought the Bulls for 9 million in the 80s and the Bulls are now estimated evaluation is 2.2 billion of which Jerry has a 40% stake which means if he ever decided to sell the team, he would make a profit of nearly a billion dollars. Additionally, for the super-rich owners these teams are nothing but investments in their portfolio. For example, Steve Ballmer's money stems from Microsoft/investing and is worth 80 billion dollars. The guy only paid 2 billion dollars for the clippers, that is champ change for a guy like Ballamer.

Although they are making millions, if I had to feel for anyone, I feel more for the players who get injured. For many of these guys basketball is their main source of income. In a league where the average time span is 4-years and most guys are not making superstar money an injury kills their earning potential. Once they are out the league you will likely never make that kind of money again. They have to learn how to make that money last as this is their retirement fund, and they must figure out other ways to make money when basketball has been their whole life and the only thing they know. Also add most of these guys are young when they get paid and not the most financially literate, an injury can make a financial situation worse.

I am all for guaranteed contracts. The players are in large part why the NBA is making so much money, there is no retirement fund, no insurance for NBA related health issues post-retirement, they must stay in shape year-round, they risk constant injury, they are constantly on the road away from family on holidays such as Christmas, they have limited prime years for earning potential, they most take part in NBA related event if they like it or not, they are under a morality cause where they pretty much have to be an angels, your is pretty much under the microscope. A guaranteed contract is absolutely necessary in my opinion. I know there are far fewer games and far more players, but It's absurd to me that the NFL doesn't have guaranteed contracts for their players considering the fact the NFL makes far more money, and their players face more health-related issues during and post their playing days.

[NO-KG-AI]

Unfortunate. i know the Ball family is one of the players who was exposed very early (meaning rigorous training) right? Any study that to a point, it's unhealthy for the human body to be exposed that early and often?

Are they? Their strength and conditioning must be trash, Lonzo and Lamelo are very physically underdeveloped for someone that went through rigorous training.

[Ryoga Hibiki]

I liked him as a player, but damn his father really made it difficult for me...

but Lonzo really behaved (and played) the right way, all the time

[Ryoga Hibiki]

Unfortunate. i know the Ball family is one of the players who was exposed very early (meaning rigorous training) right? Any study that to a point, it's unhealthy for the human body to be exposed that early and often?

rigorous training is not an issue.
the issue would be overtraining with not enough rest.

[xinxin]

too bad.


i liked his game. especially with his vastly improved shooting before his injury (either with the Pelicans or the Bulls). his game had improved much.

his health was always an issue even when he was a rookie. hardly played for the lakers. but even then, you could see flashes of his potential.

[JimmyPlopper]

Last time the Bulls had an opinion it was that Cameron Payne was not an NBA-caliber player

[Ballerhogger]

It is unfortunate . He was turning the corner too

[Optimus_Steel]

I feel terrible for the owners. He's on the hook for tens of millions of dollars for Lonzo to do absolutely nothing but sit at home. It sucks for Lonzo too, I'm sure he'd rather be playing and I feel a little for him, but these guaranteed contracts really suck for the owners who already have to overpay players due to the CBA

Lmao why would anyone feel sorry for wealthy owners who can buy everything they need or want multiple times over and their families are set for generations? The franchises are now worth billions and they have other businesses.

Not only that but teams have insurance on their contracts for situations like this.

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[LAvision]

Not shocking, he had pain walking up stairs after a year of recovery. His knee is screwed sadly.

[tribulations]

Most (only) likeable Ball. Set for life though.