Lonzo Ball
Another realistic option — in a sense — for the Bulls this offseason is Lonzo Ball. Ball is an impending free agent, but unlike some of the other guys hitting the open market, Ball is a restricted free agent. That means that Ball can sign a contract with any team he likes this summer, but the New Orleans Pelicans can match the offer, which could keep him in New Orleans.
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With New Orleans firing Stan Van Gundy one year after hiring him as head coach, it is unknown what the team’s stance is on Ball. Do they believe Ball is an ideal fit on the roster and Van Gundy didn’t maximize his ability? Or do they believe that Ball is what he is at this point and they are confident they can find an upgrade at the position? Regardless of what their thought process is, the Bulls should pursue the former first-round pick out of UCLA.
Even though Ball is criticized for his offense, he has made impressive strides as a scorer in the past two seasons. After notching 11.8 points per game on 37.5 percent shooting from the three-point line in 2019-2020, Ball followed that up with a career-best 14.6 points on 37.8 percent shooting from outside in 2020-2021.
Ball has taken an average of 7.3 three-pointers per game in the last two years, and he’s been able to efficiently make them. With Ball’s ability to facilitate and play stout defense as a bigger guard, if he can continue to improve as a scorer, the Bulls would love to make him their new point guard.
