Cap or facts? Lonzo Ball believes he was the NBA’s ‘best PG’ before slew of injuries, COVID

Lonzo Ball recently claimed he was the NBA’s "best point guard" before injuries derailed his career. However, trying to determine who the best player at any given position in the NBA is difficult for many reasons.

First, the league has transitioned to positionless basketball, which hazes the traditional assignments and roles associated with a specific position. Thus, players who were once defined as shooting guards such as Luka Doncic, James Harden and Devin Booker, are associating their skill sets with the point guard position.

The second reason is positional labels have become nonexistent, with many players adopting the fast-paced essence of the game. For example, power forwards like Kevin Durant, Julius Randle and Jeremy Sochan have routinely become their team's primary ball-handlers during fast-break situations instead of giving it to a respective guard since players are adjusting to the modern-day, fast-paced version of the NBA.

Lastly, the NBA talent pool is growing rapidly and players have redefined what a point guard looks like in terms of stats and impact. Would you be surprised if you forgot just how good Lonzo Ball was? 

Lonzo Ball may not have been the NBA's best PG but we forget how good he was

It's hard to evaluate how good Ball was due to his many injuries. Since joining the league in 2017, Ball hasn't played over 65 games in a single season. His career high of 63 games in the 2019-20 NBA season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After missing the bubble, Ball went on to have his highest-scoring season with the New Orleans Pelicans, averaging 14.6 points per contest in 55 games and finishing 19th for Most Improved Player, his only credited ranking for any major award in the league. 

After a sign-and-trade with the New Orleans that sent the fourth year to the Chicago Bulls, Ball was locked in for the next four years after he signed a four-year, $80 million contract. At the start of the 2021-22 season, Ball emerged as one of the most impactful point guards, helping the Bulls jump to a 6-1 start.

His continued dominance proved to be true, putting up career-high averages in minutes, steals, field goal percentage and 3-point percentage. On track to have his best season yet, Ball’s momentum came to a standstill on Jan. 20, 2022, when the Bulls announced he would undergo surgery to repair a torn meniscus, pending a 6-8 week return. 

Nevertheless, after being ruled out for the remainder of the season, he underwent a second operation to extract loose material around his knee, sidelining him for the entire 2022-23 season. As questions grew about his future in the NBA, Ball underwent a complete knee cartilage transplant, looking to become the first NBA player to return to the court after such a procedure. 

Was Ball really the best point guard before injuries? On Jan. 15, the last time Ball played an NBA game, the Chicago Bulls sat atop the Eastern Conference with a 27-14 record, ranking fifth in league-wide standings. The team would struggle after his injuries, finishing sixth in the Eastern Conference going 19-22 for the remainder of the season.

The Bulls were eliminated in five games by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

It’s clear that Lonzo Ball’s impact has been unparalleled as the team has yet to replicate any success hence being eliminated in the play-in tournament for the past two years in a row. As the basketball world hangs on the edge of their seats, both NBA and Chicago Bulls fans are anticipating his return to the hardwood can replicate the spark that once was.