It’s done.
As expected, Lonzo Ball has had left knee surgery on Tuesday and is currently in recovery. He reportedly will be good to go by training camp in September.
MEDICAL UPDATE: Lakers guard Lonzo Ball had successful arthroscopic surgery to his left knee today.
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) July 17, 2018
Ball is expected to make a full recovery by the start of the 2018-19 training camp. pic.twitter.com/xUD7XdM3lf
Rob Pelinka added this on the @SpectrumSN broadcast last night: “I was with Lonzo today, he had a very successful scope on his knee. We’re really excited to have that behind us and he’s in a great space." https://t.co/D5dKGEKkhV
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) July 18, 2018
Ball averaged 10.2 points and 7.2 assists per game last season and made the NBA All-Rookie second team. This summer he had been working hard on his conditioning and jumper before the injury.
Ball will be asked to push the pace (as he did last season) and be a secondary ball handler who can create shots when LeBron does not have the ball in his hands. They fit together better on the court than some people think (Lonzo did play off the ball some at UCLA), but the challenge for L.A.of teams helping off Lonzo to double/trap LeBron on the perimeter is real.
The Lakers also took a couple of shots across the bow of Ball — and his father LaVar — this summer. First there was the signing of Rajon Rondo, then Magic Johnson said this about Josh Hart at Summer League:
Magic Johnson is praising @joshhart's development and play in Vegas summer league. "Some guys better watch out because he'd gonna be pushing to start."
— Bill Oram (@billoram) July 13, 2018
The message is clear, the days of soft-pedaling and catering to Ball are over. He must earn his starting job, and there are legit challengers for his minutes. At some point, if the balance of off-court distractions and on-court production gets out of alignment, Ball’s job and standing with the Lakers are not safe.
But for now, he just needs to get right before the season.