Lonzo Ball has a ‘brand new knee’ and is ready to return after two and a half years
Lonzo Ball has been hampered by injuries for a long time now, as the Bulls quarterback is struggling after a setback during his two-and-a-half-year recovery. After playing his last game on January 14, 2022, the athlete indicated that he intends to return to compete in the season opener in Chicago.
With three weeks to go before their regular season game against the Pelicans, Lonzo hit the media and surprised everyone with his bold statements. “That’s the goal, obviously we can’t tell the future, but that’s the plan I’m on,” confirmed Ball. “I think I will be ready for the first game for sure.”
Club president Arturas Karnisovas reinforced his player’s words by confirming that “that is the plan” for his appearance in the opening night game. Still, the owner was cautious and noted that they still need to monitor how Ball’s knee reacts during training camp.
Lonzo Ball in the gym. 🔥🔥🔥
(with @chicagobulls)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 1, 2024
“Going to training camp, we will have to deliver [Lonzo] go up a little,” explained Karnisovas. “He’s already played 5-on-5, but we haven’t seen him in practice so it’s going to be a lot of experience during practice and how he can take the load, every day practice. We will take it one step at a time.”
Although Lonzo feels stronger than ever, he admitted that he expects his role to be reduced in the first few months. He will probably be on the starting minutes, and he later admitted that he will not be the player he used to be.
However, he has developed other talents during this time. “Obviously, I won’t be as athletic as I used to be, but I feel like skill and IQ can go a long way, especially in the league,” he said. “I’m not too worried about it, obviously my game will have to change a little bit, but I know well how to play it and I think I can play at a high level.”
Josh Giddey, also injured, shares the same role as Lonzo. “I think they’re trying to do what’s best for the team,” Ball said. “Obviously we’ve had a lot of success when I’m guarding points, getting rebounds, pushing it, and Giddey can do the same thing.”
New Bulls star Josh Giddey must make a full recovery from the sprained ankle he suffered in the Olympics before the season is tipped.
Josh Giddey tore his ankle ligament while playing for Australia at the Paris Olympics last summer. Despite spending the past months recovering, the new Bulls coach opened up to the media about his current condition, and assured everyone that he is on track to be on his team at the start of this upcoming NBA season.
It was during their match against Serbia, when the Aussie guard rolled his ankle and injured himself. That night, he sat on the court and saw how the Boomers lost the quarter-final game 95-90 after giving up a 24-point lead against the Europeans.
When he was ruled out of the competition, he flew back to Melbourne with his teammates and updated his scans using medical scans, which showed he had severely injured his anterior talofibular ligament. Two months later, he is still closing in on the end of his rehabilitation.
Giddey expects to be ready to play the Bulls’ first game of the regular season against the Pelicans on October 24. “It’s almost at the time when if it was a play-off game I would be there playing but because we’re already in. the off season, it’s not something you want to rush into,” he confirmed.
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