Former Lakers Guard Lonzo Ball Dealing With Worse Injury Than Initially Expected

The oft-hurt ex-Laker is struggling with health again.

Oct 28, 2024; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball (2) reacts after a foul call during the first half against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

After missing two-and-a-half years of game action while recuperating from three knee surgeries to repair a pesky meniscus tear, Chicago Bulls point guard Lonzo Ball finally made his return to the NBA in the Bulls' October 23 season opener, a 123-111 loss to Ball's prior franchise, the New Orleans Pelicans.

He made it exactly three games before getting hurt again.

Now, Ball is struggling to recuperate from a sprained right wrist that was only supposed to cost him 10 days. The 6-foot-6 guard has blown past that projected return timeline, and is apparently still shelved indefinitely.

Per K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Sports Network, Bulls head coach Billy Donovan has indicated that Ball no longer has a precise timeline for when he'll see action again.

In fairness, Ball has been limited to a bench role under a minutes restriction. The 27-year-old's ability to return at all after such a long absence is somewhat remarkable. In his three contests back, he's averaged 4.7 points on 35.7 percent field goal shooting and 33.3 percent 3-point shooting, while dishing out 3.7 assists and pulling down 2.7 rebounds a night, across 15.7 minutes a night.

Ball, a Chino Hills native, was a college phenom during his one-and-done NCAA season at UCLA, before being selected by his hometown Los Angeles Lakers with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. He was selected by team president Magic Johnson ahead of future All-Stars Jayson Tatum, De'Aaron Fox, Lauri Markkanen, Donovan Mitchell and Bam Adebayo.

Across his two seasons in Los Angeles, Ball averaged 10.0 points on .380/.315/.437 shooting splits, 6.2 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.6 blocks a night. His injury woes were an issue from the jump. The oversized point guard appeared in an average of 49.5 games during those two Lakers years.

Ball fully blossomed into his peak 3-and-D self in New Orleans. He was a core component of the trade package of promising youngster Los Angeles had to ship out in order to acquire All-NBA superstar big man Anthony Davis in the summer of 2019. In those two New Orleans years, Ball notched 13.1 points on .409/.376/.664 shooting splits, 6.4 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 0.6 blocks a bout, emerging as an above-average starting point guard in the league.

The Lakers also benefitted from the Davis deal. Next to All-NBA forward LeBron James, Davis instantly won a championship during their first season together. They haven't been quite back to the mountaintop since, though Los Angeles did reach the 2023 Western Conference Finals.

Ball's future looked bright when he inked a four-year, $80 million deal with the Chicago Bulls as a restricted free agent in a 2021 sign-and-trade. But he's only played 38 games with the club as his fourth season enters its second month. Here's hoping he can return to action soon.

More Lakers: Anthony Davis Injury Worse Than Initially Reported