(670 The Score) The Bulls will have a veteran point guard around to help provide guidance and stability amid a pivot to a rebuild.
Lonzo Ball and the Bulls have agreed to a two-year, $20-million contract extension, according to multiple reports Wednesday evening. The second year is a team option, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network reported.
Prior to the agreement, the 27-year-old Ball was working in the final season of the original four-year deal he signed with the Bulls in 2021, which had made him a trade chip as the deadline loomed Thursday afternoon and his potential free agency awaited this summer.
Ball’s new contract adds another chapter to what has been the heartwarming story of his return from a series of devastating left knee injuries. Ball was sidelined by left knee pain in January 2022 by and didn’t play in an NBA game for the next two-and-a-half seasons. In that time frame, he underwent three surgeries on his left knee. The final operation was a cartilage transplant that was a last-ditch effort to save his NBA career, and after a great deal of rehab, hard work and patience, Ball returned to play in a preseason game in mid-October.
Since then, he has played in 30 regular-season games, making nine starts and averaging 7.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 21.6 minutes per game. Ball is shooting 36.2% overall and 34.0% on 3-pointers. The Bulls have outscored opponents by 4.2 points per 100 possessions with Ball on the court this season.
He has played on a minutes restriction of some sort all season long, most recently being limited to around 28 minutes per game. Ball also has sat out one end of back-to-back sets as part of his maintenance plan. A wrist injury sidelined him for about four weeks early in the season.
Ball's new deal came three days after the Bulls traded two-time All-Star guard Zach LaVine to the Kings, a move that was a significant step toward a rebuild. Chicago is also shopping veteran center Nikola Vucevic on the trade market.
Ball is making $21.4 million this season. The structure of his new deal, with the team option providing flexibility on the back end, will potentially make him an attractive trade chip next season.