The Bulls expect point guard Lonzo Ball to miss another season because of his left knee injury.
“Everything is going well,” executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said Thursday night. “Going into the offseason, I think our expectation is that he’s not coming back next season and he’s going to continue on his recovery. If he comes back, it would be great.”
Ball hasn’t played since Jan. 14, 2022. He had a cartilage transplant in March, his third operation on the knee in a little more than a year. Karnisovas said Ball stopped using crutches last month.
The news came on an NBA Draft night in which the Bulls — who started the night without any picks — opted to stay pat through Round 1, before making a trade with Washington and selecting Tennessee wing Julian Phillips with the 35th overall pick in the second round.
Phillips doesn’t solve the outside shooting issue — only hitting 24% from that range last season — but is another weapon off the bench that brings athleticism and defense.
Contributing: Joe Cowley