When the Chicago Bulls begin their 2024-2025 regular season, it will have been 1,014 days since Lonzo Ball last played in an NBA game.

Ball, who is now 26 years old, tore his meniscus during the Bulls’ 138-96 loss to the Golden State Warriors on January 14, 2022. Chicago was first in the East at that point, lost the top seed within a few days, then reclaimed it by late February 2022 for the last time as they eventually slid to sixth by season’s end. The Bulls fell out of the playoffs in the first round that year then missed the postseason altogether in the two seasons since.

The 6’6 point guard’s rehabilitation process was anything but smooth, requiring two additional procedures that sidelined him for two full seasons, following his shortened 2021-2022 campaign.

While Ball’s absence isn’t the sole reason for Chicago’s recent struggles, it has undeniably been a significant factor. On a team with three score-first players in DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Nikola Vucevic, Ball’s role as the primary distributor was of utmost importance. 

Coby White had a strong campaign last season filling in for Ball as the Bulls’ starting point guard and even finished second in the NBA Most Improved Player race. However, White’s score-first mentality made him a less than ideal floor general for the team.

Thankfully for Chicago, it appears that Ball will be all set to return to the court when the upcoming season tips off. Recent videos have emerged of Ball participating in five-on-five scrimmages with other NBA players which is quite an encouraging sign with the beginning of the regular season still two months away. 

Ball has confirmed his return this season, but the team he’ll rejoin is vastly different from the one he last suited up for. DeRozan has moved on after signing with the Sacramento Kings during this ongoing offseason while Alex Caruso was traded away to the Oklahoma City Thunder for point guard Josh Giddey. 

With White’s rise and Giddey’s arrival, Ball can ease back into things, likely starting the season as the team’s third point guard. It will likely take him a few months to settle back into the pace of the NBA, but a return to his pre-injury form is definitely not out of the question given that he is still relatively young.

One player whose career could be a helpful blueprint for Ball is retired guard Shaun Livingston who played in the league for 14 years and won three NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors. Like Ball, Livingston is a tall guard who entered the league with a shaky jumpshot.

Livingston injured several parts of his knee in February 2007, with doctors reportedly discussing the possibility of an amputation, before returning a year and a half later. It took Livingston a few years to get his rhythm back, but once he did, he became a vital role player for the Warriors’ dynasty. 

Given Ball’s elite feel for the game, passing abilities, and improving jumper, it would not come as a surprise if he can follow–or even exceed–Livingston’s path. His career is far from over and his natural gifts should allow him to overcome this setback. Though Ball has fallen off the radar due to his prolonged absence, it’s only a matter of time before he reintroduces himself to the basketball world in a big way.