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Jamal Collier, ESPN
CHICAGO — As Lonzo Ball checked into his first NBA game in more than 2½ years on Wednesday night, the United Center crowd serenaded him with a standing ovation. He threw his hands in the air and tapped his heart, acknowledging the crowd before playing for the first time since Jan. 14, 2022.
Ball was restricted to 15 minutes, but finished with 10 points on 4 of 6 shooting in Chicago’s preseason victory against Minnesota.
“Felt a lot better playing then watching,” Ball said after the game. “I couldn’t even put it into words how it felt being out there…. It was definitely a moment I’ll never forget.”
Since playing in his last NBA game more than 1,000 days ago, Ball has undergone three arthroscopic procedures on his left knee, including a rare double cartilage transplant in March 2023.
“Long. Really long,” Ball said with a laugh when looking back at his recovery process. “But looking back on it, it went a lot faster than I thought. … Them telling me 18 more months recovery [after the third surgery], it sounds crazy in the moment, but now I’m here. It’s all behind me now.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Ball said he was “full of joy” to be preparing for a game again but also acknowledged that he would not be the same player he was when he last took the court in January 2022.
“It’s not the same body I started off with,” Ball said after Wednesday’s shootaround. “But I think I can still be productive and effective on the court. That’s why I’m still trying to play.”
And on Wednesday night, Ball made an impact every time he stepped on the floor. He knocked down his first shot of the game, a corner 3-pointer, and then threw up three fingers as he ran up the floor. He stole the ball from Julius Randle on another possession and dove into the Bulls bench to save it from going out of bounds.
It was a vintage performance from Ball. In his first season in Chicago in 2021-22, Ball averaged 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists on 42% shooting in 35 games. And in his first game back, he did a little bit of everything on the court: collecting one block, one steal, one assist and one rebound.
“I thought he looked great,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “There’s a lot of things he does in the game that he doesn’t really require anything with his knee or his body, he uses his brain so much. He moved really, really well.”
And most importantly for both he and the Bulls, he wasn’t thinking about his knee while playing.
“That’s a positive thing,” Ball said. “I didn’t feel it at all. I felt like I was moving great. So now it’s just about building, just continue to do it night and night out.”
Donovan said the Bulls will monitor Ball’s knee to see how it reacts to his first game action and he is almost certain to have a light day in practice Thursday. Then, Ball said he also plans to play in Friday’s preseason finale against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“I think he’s going to need to play,” Donovan said. “That’s kind of the normal NBA rhythm, playing every other day.”
Throughout the recovery process, Ball, who will turn 27 later this month, remained confident he’d return to the court, seeking opinions from multiple knee specialists until he found a path to recovery.
“I think it’s the belief in myself — knowing what I was feeling, knowing that I was a good age to come back from it,” Ball said. “I’m just trusting in the doctors and people around me.”
By August, Ball was cleared to play in 5-on-5 scrimmages. He arrived at the Bulls’ facility a few weeks ahead of training camp to begin working out with the rest of the team. He had expected to make his preseason debut earlier in the schedule, but he was set back a few days after testing positive for COVID-19.
Ball has also had bouts of soreness throughout the preseason, which he said is to be expected. He emphasized both he and the team will have to manage his workload and playing time this season.
“We have a good handle right now, but I think it’s going to change throughout the year,” Ball said. “Every day is going to be a different challenge we just have to overcome.”