The last few years have been the toughest of Lonzo Ball’s professional basketball career. The talented two-way guard has not played for the Chicago Bulls since he injured his knee against the Golden State Warriors on January 14, 2022. Since then, it has been a seemingly never-ending cycle of surgeries, recovery, and rehab sessions. And as Ball is set to undergo another knee surgery—the fourth of his career—his teammate DeMar DeRozan wants to make sure Lonzo’s spirits remain high.
“For me, I don’t even think about like, ‘Damn.’ You just look at it more from a human standpoint, nothing to do with basketball. I just want him to be good. That’s all I care about. Basketball comes last,” said DeRozan.
Lonzo remains upbeat
The news of a third knee surgery in the last 14 months would be enough to bring down anyone’s morale, especially an NBA player who was considered to be one of the league’s rising stars. However, according to DeRozan, Ball is feeling upbeat.
“His spirits have been good every time you see him, talk to him,” DeRozan added. “He’s a helluva dude. The strength he got to have every time we see him to be positive, being in a great mood, says a lot for him.”
More than basketball
Ball played just 35 games with the Bulls last season before shutting it down due to his knee injury. When he was on the court, Chicago looked like a legitimate title contender. Without him, the Bulls struggled on both ends of the floor and were eliminated in the first round of the Playoffs. This season, the Bulls are underperforming and battling to make it to the Play-in tournament.
Despite the team’s troubles, Deebo says Ball’s health and welfare are the only priority.
“For me, it just gets to a point where all I care about is his well-being,” DeRozan explained. “It’s bigger than basketball. Taking away something for so long, him not being able to play basketball, just takes a toll on him. So more so than anything, as a friend just worrying about him. I could care less about anything to do with the team. Just his mental well-being and hoping he got all the positive backing that he needs just to get through whatever it is he has to get through.”
