The Los Angeles Lakers may be considering a reunion with Lonzo Ball, but they’re not willing to roll the dice unless the price is right. According to Lakers insider Jovan Buha, the franchise has legitimate interest in bringing back the former No. 2 overall pick, though only under very specific conditions.
“I do, I think they would be. It’s just a matter of what his price is, and you have to factor in the health and the history there of, just you can’t even pencil him in for 60 games.”
“So whatever you’re giving up for him, there has to be some level of a discount, or you’re factoring in, like, this dude might just play 40, 50 games. He’s a guy you have to load manage. Like, how can we load manage him to get to mid-April in one piece?”
That skepticism is well-earned. Ball has played only 70 games total in the past four seasons, including two seasons missed entirely due to a devastating knee injury that required multiple surgeries.
He made a limited return last season, appearing in just 35 games while averaging 7.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists on 36.6% shooting from the field and 34.4% from three. While he showed flashes of his old defensive brilliance and floor vision, the explosiveness and rhythm were clearly not all the way back.
A potential trade idea making the rounds features the Lakers receiving Lonzo Ball along with a 2028 Chicago Bulls second-round pick, while sending out Maxi Kleber and Shake Milton.
Los Angeles Lakers Receive: Lonzo Ball, 2028 Chicago Bulls second-round pick
Chicago Bulls Receive: Maxi Kleber, Shake Milton
The Lakers Take A Risk At A Discounted Price
From the Lakers’ perspective, this is a low-risk, medium-reward gamble.
Kleber and Milton are end-of-bench rotation players in a fully healthy Lakers lineup, and the front office may be willing to exchange those pieces for a point guard who, if managed properly, can provide defensive balance, high-IQ passing, and pace off the bench.
Ball would likely slide into a reserve role behind Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic. His perimeter defense and passing could help stabilize bench units, but the team knows any success would depend on his availability, and that’s been the biggest hurdle of all.
The Bulls End The Lonzo Ball Era
For the Bulls, this move would officially close the book on the Lonzo Ball era. When he was first acquired to team up with DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Nikola Vucevic, the Bulls believed they had assembled a contender in the East.
And for a while, they looked the part, but everything fell apart when Ball’s knee injuries derailed the team’s momentum.
With DeRozan and LaVine now long gone and the franchise fully in rebuild mode, moving Ball and gaining flexible veterans like Kleber and Milton in return, along with clearing future salary and risk, makes practical sense.
The story of Lonzo Ball’s career has been one of promise, frustration, and perseverance. A Lakers return would be poetic, but only if the cost reflects the reality.
