PHILADELPHIA – Billy Donovan is betting on Lonzo Ball.

It’s a longshot, the Bulls coach admitted the point guard is facing an “uphill battle,’’ but he still chose to move the chips to that side of the table.

Donovan announced that Ball did have his third surgery in the last 14 months on his left knee Monday – a cartilage transplant – and while only a few professional basketball players have undergone such a procedure, none have made it back.

“That’s right,’’ Donovan acknowledged. “I remember – I don’t remember if it was in high school or college – and Bernard King blew out his ACL [in 1985], and no one had ever come back from that. You’re just hopeful that maybe [Ball] can be the first. I know he’s going to work really hard. I know that they felt the surgery went well. But I do agree that there’s nothing that’s out there that says, ‘Hey, here’s how guys have come back and been able to respond to this.’

“But I do know that Lonzo, and the all the information he was able to gather just from different sets of doctors, making the decision that he felt that this was the best chance to be able to get him back on the court, and we all understand that’s going to be an uphill battle for him. But I know that he’s going to do everything possible in his rehab to get himself back on the court.’’