Lonzo Ball appears to finally be trending in the right direction after not playing in an NBA game in more than two years, and the Chicago Bulls star recently shared some of the details about the knee injury that has kept him sidelined for so long.
In the latest episode of the “What an Experience” podcast that he co-hosts, Ball spoke about the extensive issues he has dealt with since he first injured his knee when he was with the Los Angeles Lakers early in his NBA career.
“To make a long story short: Ultimately, it started with a meniscus tear, basically started on the Lakers when I tore it the first time,” Ball explained. “(I) tore it a couple more times to a point to where there was no more meniscus left, bone on bone was rubbing. So, the cartilage was gone and the bone was messed up. So, I had to get a new meniscus from a donor, I had to get a bone allograft, and I had to get some new cartilage put in as well. All that healed up and now I’m back on the court.”
Lonzo Ball reveals that a meniscus was donated to him
"I had to get new meniscus from a donor, I had to get a bone allograft and I had to get some new cartilage put in as well"
( @TheWAEShow / h/t @LeagueAlerts )
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 24, 2024
Ball added that he had a “wasted year” as doctors tried to figure out what the issue was during and after the 2021-22 season, but he feels he has been on the right path for the past 14 or 15 months.
Ball said he expects to be ready to play at the start of the 2024-25 season.
What we knew prior to Ball’s revelation on his podcast was that he suffered a torn meniscus in 2022. He received a cartilage transplant in his knee in 2023, and missed all of this season due to continued discomfort. There was even a rumor that his knee was so bad he was having difficulty with basic day-to-day tasks.
There has been hardly any positive news surrounding Ball since he last played on Jan. 14, 2022. However, a recent video that went viral gave Bulls fans hope that the 26-year-old may have finally turned a corner.
