After missing almost three years, Lonzo Ball returned to the court for the Chicago Bulls earlier in the week against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Ball had been sidelined for over 1,000 days for what was supposed to be a meniscus injury in his left knee, but it kept him out longer than expected and put a question mark on whether he'd ever return to play basketball.
Ball received a standing ovation in his return and also finished with 10 points, shooting 2-of-4 from three. Though he had a solid return to the court, NBA insider Brian Windhorst doesn't think the Bulls will be expecting much from him this season.
“They’ve moved on from him as a player they can count on,” Windhorst said on The Hoop Collective. “They drafted and signed Coby White to an extension, they’ve traded for Josh Giddey. I don’t think they’re counting on anything from him but it’s a cool moment from a guy who at one time was regarded.”
“It was an awesome scene to see and hopefully he’s playing all year because like I said, watching him last night moving kind of gingerly around the court but always being in the right spot summed up why I’ve always been such a fan of him because he just thinks the game in such a cool way and he’s just a really fun player so hopefully it’s just the first of many games for him this season,” Tim Bontempts said.
It will be interesting to see what Ball's involvement in the rotation will look like, especially with the several options they have at the guard position.
Lonzo Ball returns to the court for Bulls after almost three years
After the game, Lonzo Ball shared his thoughts on returning to the court.
“It felt a lot better playing than watching, I’ll say that much,” Ball said. “I can’t even really put into words how I felt out there. I was just blessed and happy to be out there. All the support around me was great all night. It was definitely a moment I’ll never forget.”
Ball knows that things will probably never be the same as he'll have to monitor how he feels after games, but he's still ready to go out and play if all is well.
“It’s definitely going to be different,” Ball said. “It’s not the same body I started off with. But I think I can still be productive and effective on the court. That’s why I’m still trying to play. … I feel comfortable out there. So other than that, I just got to hoop.”
