Chicago Bulls long-injured point guard Lonzo Ball may actually be working toward a return to the court.

This time for real.

Although fans have heard that Ball could now return after a series of knee surgeries over the past two seasons, the former UCLA Bruins star and No. 2 overall lottery pick is finally taking concrete steps toward a comeback.

According to Jasmyn Wimbish of CBS Sports, Ball participated in a five-on-five scrimmage this week alongside Jaren Jackson Jr., power forward/center and Defensive Player of the Year for the Memphis Grizzlies, Daniel Gafford, a second-year center for the All-Rookie Team Dallas Mavericks, and DeAndre Jordan, the former All-NBA center who is now finishing his career as a bench player for the Denver Nuggets.

Ball had been given the green light for 5-on-5 contact training since the beginning of the month.

Ball originally signed a four-year, $80 million contract with the Bulls during the team’s eventful restructure in the summer of 2021. That deal included a $21.4 million player option for 2024-25. Considering the 6-foot-6 veteran only appeared in 35 of a possible 246 regular-season games (and missed the club’s only playoff run during that time), it was a foregone conclusion that he would exercise that player option.

The giant point guard suffered a torn meniscus on January 14, 2022, during his first season with the Bulls.

“It’s great to see Ball making significant progress toward his return,” Wimbish notes. “And even though the Bulls are further away from the playoffs this season than they were when he signed his contract, it could be an ideal situation for him to make his comeback since expectations aren’t as high in Chicago.”

When healthy, Ball was an excellent 3-and-D guard who also had explosive finishing skills at the basket. Since he was unable to play for two and a half years, it’s likely he won’t be able to provide the same defensive threat he was before those surgeries.

In the 35 games Ball played in 2021-22, Chicago was dominant at 22-13 and was one of the top teams in the East, led by All-Stars DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine. Ball and All-Defensive guard Alex Caruso helped anchor the club’s defense on the perimeter, while Nikola Vucevic filled the position as an efficient (at the time) jump shooter and rebounder. Ball averaged 13.0 points on a .423/.423/.750 slash line, 5.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.8 blocks in those 35 games of his final healthy season.

Without Ball, Chicago eventually fell to 6th place in the East and was quickly knocked out of the playoffs by the Milwaukee Bucks in a five-game first-round matchup. Ball has yet to return, and the Bulls have yet to return to the playoffs without him on the bench.

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