Bulls’ Lonzo Ball Still Finding Ways to Make an Impact

The Chicago Bulls are going to be without starting point guard Lonzo Ball for the foreseeable future. A best-case scenario would seem to be that he is back in time for what they hope will be a postseason ramp-up.

Without Ball, though, that scenario seems less of a certainty than it should be for a team that sat in first place in the Eastern Conference after the All-Star break.

FiveThirtyEight has them pegged for 35 wins and an 11-seed.

Even more optimistic prognostications see them finishing in a similar range to last season when they went into the postseason as the sixth-seed in the East but were also just two games from being in the Play-In Tournament. If they hope to make any noise in the postseason they need Ball back but he is still finding ways to lead this team.

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Lonzo Ball a Calming Presence

Ball recently returned to Chicago to finish rehabbing with the team after undergoing the second surgery on his right knee in the last nine months and the third overall. The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that there is optimism he can return sometime after New Year’s Day.

Throughout the entire ordeal – which essentially sunk the Bulls last season – Ball has been a sounding board for his current replacement, second-year guard Ayo Dosunmu.

“He told me about…the pace of the game, and understanding where and knowing the personnel of my teammates,” Dosunmu said of Ball. “Just knowing where they like to get the ball at. Just being a student of the game. Managing the game.”

Last season, the Bulls lost a lot of what made them so dangerous when Ball went down.

As the point guard, he initiated the offense and got them running in transition – both of which bogged down in his absence. Additionally, he shot 42% from beyond the arc on a team that finished 30th in three-point attempts – the Bulls needed him.

That’s before addressing what he brought on defense.

The Bulls hope they have done enough this offseason to better withstand Ball’s absence. And they clearly know it is not something that can be accomplished with just one player.

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Team Effort to Replace Ball

“We have a lot of the same qualities – that anticipation, the knack for making the right play, getting deflections,” Caruso told K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. “And then he’s so lethal in transition. His numbers are off the charts…I know once he comes back, it’s going to be like it was before. We’re going to cause havoc for people.”

Caruso called Ball a “special talent” and it shows with all the ways the Bulls have gone about replacing him. Dosunmu earned the starting job with a strong preseason after starting 40 games last season, 38 coming in Ball’s absence.

While Caruso will factor in too, he already has a role in which he thrives coming off of the bench.

But the Bulls signed Goran Dragic in free agency. He is probably not up for getting the 20 to 25 minutes as many thought upon his arrival but can still run an offense – especially in pick-and-rolls – and score the ball effectively.

They also drafted Dalen Terry with the 18th overall pick. He is raw but has already showcased some of the preternatural feel for the game that made Ball stand out.

Fourth-year guard Coby White is also still around but, like Caruso, his role is what it is.

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Bulls in Familiar Position

One could argue that not being prepared for Ball’s potential absence was a greater detriment than the actual loss of the player. He did come in with preexisting injury concerns with just one season of at least 60 appearances.

Their decision to stand pat at the trade deadline last season was likely influenced by the belief that Ball would return at some point.

They are taking no such chances this time around.

And, even more encouraging, they have seemingly gone about adding contingencies for their contingencies. Losing a player as versatile as Ball is always going to hurt but the Bulls have good reason to believe they are better prepared to overcome not having him.

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