Lonzo Ball misses preseason opener, but not due to knee injury

Lonzo Ball has not played an NBA game since Jan. 14, 2022. 

After his initial meniscus tear 33 months ago, the Bulls guard endured setbacks in rehabilitation, leading to two more procedures on his knee. This offseason, however, there was finally hope that the former No. 2 pick was on the verge of a comeback.

Ball was a full participant in the Bulls' training camp, further fueling hopes for his return to action.

Then, on Tuesday, the point guard didn't take the court for the Bulls' preseason opener against the Cavaliers. His absence immediately sparked speculation of his knee issues flaring up again. 

Thankfully, Ball sat out due to COVID-19-related illness, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. 

After the game, Bulls coach Billy Donovan revealed that Ball's bout with the virus affected his conditioning and caused him to skip the game.  

"I think in talking to medical and even my conversations with him, I think there's still a period of him getting his strength back," Donovan said, via Cowley. "Probably lost out on working out for more than a week (with COVID). Lost some weight, lost some strength. We're going to be cautious with the buildup."

Donovan remained optimistic about Ball's return to the court at some point in the preseason.  

"I fully anticipate him playing at some point in the preseason games, but I think it's going to be based on more practices, load [management], where he's at physically. Right now, the best decision with where he's at is just continue to try and build him up."

Chicago will play four more preseason games before starting its 2024-25 campaign against the Pelicans on Oct. 23.

At the time of Ball's meniscus tear in Jan. 2022, the Bulls (27-13) had the best record in the East and had seemingly found a winning formula with the core of Ball, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic. Since then, the Bulls' fortunes have gone south, with the franchise missing the playoffs in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.