As Bulls guard Lonzo Ball approached a group of reporters, the first words out of his mouth perfectly described his predicament: \u201cCan\u2019t catch a break,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Ball suffered a right wrist sprain in the first quarter of Monday\u2019s game against the Memphis Grizzlies when he went for a steal and tried to brace his fall.<\/p>\n
Ball was wearing a brace as he addressed the media. Doctors told Ball to hold it still for 10 days and let the swelling subside before a revaluation. Ball said the injury is between a Grade 1 and 2 sprain.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were saying that if I play on it right now while it\u2019s still swollen, it could get to a Grade 3, and that would require surgery,\u201d Ball said. \u201cTrying to avoid that, obviously. Let the swelling go down and hopefully tape it up and get back to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The play appeared to happen after Ball shot a three-pointer that turned into a transition opportunity for the Grizzlies. Ball tried to steal a pass intended for forward Jake LaRavia and came down on the wrist. The injury is the latest setback for Ball, who suffered three injuries to his left knee.<\/p>\n
Despite feeling some discomfort at halftime, Ball continued playing on Monday through the pain. He didn\u2019t think much of the injury because his \u201cadrenaline was going.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJust taped it up and kept playing,\u201d Ball said. \u201cDidn\u2019t think it was going to be this bad, but hopefully I can get over it quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Bulls will again be without Ball\u2019s services, just as he seemed to be getting his rhythm back. Limited by a minutes restriction, Ball played a season-high 18 minutes on Monday with six assists and delivered two big three-pointers that helped the Bulls complete a 20-point comeback. He had been playing in four four-minute stretches with the hope he could ramp up from there.<\/p>\n
Upping his minutes allowed coach Billy Donovan to experiment by having him play with guard Josh Giddey, giving the lineup two high-level playmakers. Despite injuries taking away some of Ball\u2019s athleticism and lateral quickness, he can still be a productive part of a high-producing offense with his high IQ and shooting.<\/p>\n
Ball\u2019s instinctive playmaking is what the Bulls missed when he was injured. His ability to process quickly and whip passes to the right person is subtle but helps keep the offense moving. He was producing in the connecting role; three of his six assists on Monday were in the fourth quarter. Ball allowed guard Zach LaVine to thrive in an off-ball role because he can deliver backdoor passes on the money.<\/p>\n
The Bulls were a plus-23 in Ball\u2019s 47 minutes this season, his first NBA action since January 2022. He also had the highest assist-to-turnover ratio on the team (2.67) while averaging 4.7 points and 2.7 rebounds over three games.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a blow for Ball and the Bulls as they have to decide how to compensate for his absence. Guard Dalen Terry brings a certain defensive tenacity, but he\u2019s neither the shooter nor playmaker that Ball is. Guard Ayo Dosunmu loves to play in transition, but his shot hasn\u2019t fallen yet this season (15% from three before Wednesday\u2019s game). There\u2019s no one-to-one Ball replacement on the roster, but the Bulls will continue to launch threes and play at a breakneck pace.<\/p>\n
Ball\u2019s return was one of the more positive stories in the NBA. But now the team must play its high-octane style without him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was not even a freak injury; it\u2019s just something that happened,\u201d Ball said.<\/p>\n
Donovan has shown he\u2019s not averse to searching for new looks based on his personnel. In the Bulls\u2019 victory Monday against the Grizzlies, he played Josh Giddey and Ball together and had good results instantly. Ball will be out at least 10 days, but expect the lineup experiments to continue.<\/p>\n
By\u00a0Joe Cowley<\/p>\n
The statue \u2014 with a face that, to put it mildly, isn\u2019t a perfect depiction of Wade \u2014 was immediately a talking point, trending globally on social media and even getting mentioned on national newscasts.<\/p>\n
By\u00a0AP<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t pretty in the first half, but thanks to the bench and Lonzo Ball\u2019s leadership, the Bulls dug their way out of a 20-point hole.<\/p>\n
By\u00a0Joe Cowley<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were saying that if I play on it right now while it\u2019s still swollen, it could get to a Grade 3, and that would require surgery,\u201d Ball said. \u201cTrying to avoid that, obviously. Let the swelling go down and hopefully tape it up and get back to it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2124,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"\n