Zach LaVine underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee on Tuesday in Los Angeles. Chicago Bulls executives are in Los Angeles to attend various agency pro days in advance of next month's NBA Draft and were in close contact with the two-time All-Star guard, who is expected to begin a short rehabilitation period shortly.
In a release, the team termed the surgery "successful" and said LaVine is expected to make a full recovery.
LaVine becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1. In his end-of-season news conference in late April, Bulls executive vice president Artūras Karnišovas not only said it’s his desire to re-sign LaVine but that this procedure---which was expected but not official at the time---wouldn’t impact negotiations.
“What he had to go through the second part of the season, we definitely appreciate him battling in every game,” Karnišovas said. “I enjoyed again the second year with Zach, two years in a row being an All-Star, working with Zach and getting to know him. He has a great relationship with (coach) Billy (Donovan). He has a great support system here with our coaching staff and front office, so I hope he’s here for a long time.’’
LaVine exited the Jan. 14 home game against the Golden State Warriors with knee soreness and underwent an MRI the following day that the Bulls said revealed no structural damage. LaVine then missed the next five games.
In February, LaVine missed three more games and visited Neal ElAttrache, the same doctor who performed Tuesday’s procedure and LaVine’s torn ACL repair in February 2017. At that time, LaVine received platelet-rich plasma therapy, a cortisone injection and had fluid drained in an attempt to salvage his season.
LaVine played in his second straight All-Star game and then appeared in 20 of the Bulls’ final 23 games. But he clearly labored through lingering soreness and stiffness, and long days of treatment became his norm.
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LaVine still averaged 24.4 points on 47.6 percent shooting, including 38.9 percent from 3-point range. But his numbers tailed off a bit following another sizzling start.
That LaVine chose to play through his ailments during a contract year didn’t go overlooked by an organization that can extend LaVine a five-year deal worth roughly $212 million if it chooses. LaVine also played through a torn ligament in his left thumb earlier in the season.
“I care about basketball a lot. Basketball’s my life. I care about the guys in the locker room and on the team, the coaches, the training staff, everybody. We put so much into it. And so do I. I don’t want to miss games when I can go out there and still be productive and play,” LaVine said in late April, when asked why he kept playing rather than having a knee procedure done during the season. "It might not be at 100 percent. But I can still go out there and help DeMar (DeRozan), help Vooch (Nikola Vučević), help Lonzo (Ball) with me just being on the court. It showed because we were able to still win games.
“I don’t feel like if I went and got surgery on my thumb at the beginning of the season or I shut it down at All-Star break and got surgery, whatever it would have been, I don’t think we would have had the same year. I don’t think it would have been as satisfying.
"Sometimes you’ve got to play through things to really see the grit in the team or to see the value. I’m happy with the year. I’m happy that I battled through injuries. Regardless of the contract, I think you guys see where my mindset is and the type of player I am. I’m a fighter."
On their trip to Los Angeles for agency pro days, Bulls executives also planned to connect with DeMar DeRozan and Lonzo Ball, the latter of which had been showing improvement as he recovers from a bone bruise in his left knee that predated meniscus surgery in January.