Zach LaVine says he will be on top of his strength and conditioning

Zach is ready to stay in top form for next season.

After coming off a season during which he got off to a slow start due to an arthroscopic surgery done on his knee in the off-season, Chicago Bulls wingman Zach LaVine is keen on staying on top of his conditioning level to make sure he hits the ground running once next season kicks off.

Slow start

LaVine got off to a sluggish start to the 2022-2023 season, missing four of the team's first eight games as part of a team-mandated injury-management plan. When the former UCLA Bruin did get on the floor, the results were a mixed bag, as he averaged 20 points, albeit on inefficient shooting splits of 39% from the field, and 31% from three.

"The beginning month, that was tough getting your rhythm back. We weren't playing well at that time either," shared LaVine.

However, Flight 8 soon got his groove back on the floor. In December, the two-time slam dunk champion averaged 24.5 points on 52% shooting. He also connected on 42% of his three-pointers, a dramatic improvement from November.

"I told you (reporters) at the beginning of the season, coming in off a knee scope, I was going to work my way into the season. And then from December on, I played the way I was supposed to," LaVine added.

Iron man

Despite his knee troubles, LaVine ended up missing just five games in the regular season and finished the season with robust numbers of 24.8, 4.5, and 4.2 assists per game in almost 36 minutes of action. In his exit interview, LaVine mentioned he was as healthy as ever and that he intends for his body to stay that way.

"But since then, I had no complaints about my knee. I'm always going to be on top of my rehab and my strength and conditioning. Nobody has to worry about that."