What is the Bulls’ plan for Lonzo Ball? Artūras Karnišovas shares his thoughts originally appeared in NBC Sports Chicago
After a second consecutive loss to the Heat – marking the second year in a row the Bulls failed to make the playoffs – Artūras Karnišovas admitted that changes are on the way for the organization.
“I will look at the entire group. This group didn’t work,” Karnišovas said at the Advocate Center on Saturday. “There are a lot of good things about certain individual players and a lot of young people who have taken a step forward and that is positive. But in total, as a group, it didn’t work. So I’m going to have to find those answers in the offseason.”
MORE: Bulls’ Artūras Karnišovas vows to make changes
Part of that equation is sidelined point guard Lonzo Ball, who continues to recover from three separate knee surgeries that have kept him off the floor since January 2022. Recently, Ball’s status has improved, uninterruptedly allowed to cut, run and ramp. increase physical activity.
On the radio with 670 The Score during the first week of April, Ball LaVar’s father designed your child is 4-5 months old before he can play full-contact 5-on-5 basketball. Right now, Lonzo still has some obstacles to overcome.
A four-month timeline from LaVar’s projection calls for a near return for Lonzo around August; a return closer to five months would put it in early September. With the 2024 NBA Draft scheduled to begin on June 27, and NBA free agency opening three days after that, Ball creates a difficult schedule for the Bulls to figure out their place during a turning point in the organization.
The only certainty in Ball’s situation? He will undoubtedly pick up his player option for the 2024-25 season, worth $21.3 million. If Ball is unable to return before the season and his injury is deemed career-ending by an independent doctor, the Bulls could earn $21 million in salary cap relief.
From a human perspective, everyone at the United Center is rooting for Ball. His pending return would set a benchmark in the history of sports medicine, as apparently no athlete has returned from an injury of his severity.
Still, the Bulls are building a team; something Karnišovas said on Wednesday needs to change. How will the Bulls handle the Ball situation?
“We’ll just wait and see his progression over the next few months,” Karnisovas said. “He’s progressing well. Everything seems smooth sailing. So we’ll see where he is in a few months.”
Everyone wants to see Ball return to the court. He has been a key missing piece on a Bulls team lacking a tempting facilitator, 3-point shooter and elite perimeter defender alongside Alex Caruso. But his situation creates a strange situation for the Bulls.
The backcourt is getting crowded with Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu coming off seasons in which they each made huge strides in their young careers. And the looming futures of Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Williams make it harder for the Bulls front office to fully navigate their cap situation.
But the Bulls have already supported Ball’s recovery over the past 2.5 seasons he’s been away. There’s no reason for them to give up on the point guard now, especially when his rehab is on an upward trajectory.
“He’s improving,” Karnisovas said of Ball. “We’ll see where he’s at over the next few months. There’s no setbacks, so we’ll see where he’s at in terms of the court and the basketball side of things. So we’ll find out.”
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23968388/226053_energy.0.jpg?w=300&resize=300,300&ssl=1 "Clean energy infrastructure is vulnerable to cyberattacks – the Biden administration has a plan to protect it")
