Midway through the first quarter of the Bulls’ penultimate preseason game, Lonzo Ball took the court for the first time in 1,006 days. After years of speculation, and numerous start-and-stop injury ramp-ups, many thought Ball’s return to the court would never come. But despite many pundits doubting Ball’s true intention, Ball always remained hopeful and optimistic that he would have his redemption. It’s not all that often that a player gets a standing ovation—doubly so in the preseason—but that is what Ball was welcomed back to, when his long awaited return came to fruition.
Although it was announced just before tip-off, that Ball would be playing on a minutes restriction, that should have come as little to no surprise. Someone expecting a player to return from a multi-year absence with no on-court restrictions, is not living in reality. For his part, Ball did ultimately ended up playing roughly 15 minutes—the result of four different two-ish minute bursts. And after accumulating an efficient stat line, and injecting a bit of his signature up-beat tempo, the end result was Lonzo Ball looking not totally dissimilar from the player we saw last over two and a half years ago.
Lonzo Ball Makes His Long-Awaited Return to the Court
Analysis of Lonzo Ball’s Performance
After missing over two and a half years of game action, Lonzo Ball’s return to the court had to be an emotional one. But judging from Ball’s composure, he wasn’t going to let his emotions or nerves get in the way of him playing his game. Emotions were certainly high, but that had more to do with the atmosphere in the arena, than Ball himself. Every time the former number two pick touched the ball, the crowd would roar. You could feel the mutual excitement amongst fans building within the arena. And the joy that Ball’s teammates were experiencing was genuine and clear as day. The camaraderie between teammates was palpable throughout the entirety of the night. The Bulls ultimately got the 125-123 win over the Timberwolves, but the night was clearly all about Lonzo Ball. All the fans within the United Center knew it, and so did Ball’s teammates.
Ball may ultimately struggle to consistently look as impressive as he did during the Bulls preseason win over the Timberwolves, but for one night at least, je looked more than capable of being a rotational NBA player again. Against the Timberwolves, Ball wasted little time reminding everyone of his shooting prowess. Mere moments after checking into the game, Ball splashed in his first three-pointer. And just a few possessions later, Ball knocked down another long range look. Even more important, however, is that he looked confident doing so. There was zero hesitation in Ball’s willingness to let it fly from distance. Additionally, there was also seemingly zero perceivable hesitation in the rest of Ball’s game—which is uncharacteristic of someone returning from such a prolonged injury absence.
The Last Word
15 minutes of preseason action is far too small of a sample size to draw any real conclusions from, but the early returns on Ball definitely look promising. Ball didn’t visually appear physically hesitant. He looked confident and comfortable from a basketball standpoint. And he looked to be enjoying himself about as much as you’d expect from someone who hasn’t been able to do what he loves most for over two and a half years.
The Bulls team which Ball is returning to a wildly different team than when he was last healthy. And as a result, Ball’s role within the team is far less defined and far more ambiguous. Is it realistic for Ball to supplant Josh Giddey and reclaim his spot within the starting 5? No it’s not. Is it realistic for a healthy Lonzo Ball to fade into obscurity on the bench of a middling Eastern Conference team? Also no. If Ball is able to remain relatively healthy, theres going to be a role for him on this Bulls team. What that role looks like exactly, is yet to be defined. But if Ball proved anything during his return against the Timberwolves, it’s that he’s as comfortable as ever on an NBA court. And for someone who’s been sidelined for as long as he has, that’s a compliment of the highest order.
