Is Lonzo Ball hurt? A look back at his UCLA career and a potential early retirement

Lonzo Ball has struggled to stay healthy in his six-year NBA career. The Chicago Bulls guard has played in just 252 out of a possible 472 career games. Ball has played in more than 60 games in a season just one time thus far.

More concerning, he has played in just 35 games over the past two seasons after missing the entire 2022-2023 season. While healthy, the former UCLA Bruins star has been a difference maker, particularly on the defensive end. Take a look at the latest update on the health of the former All-American.

How did Lonzo Ball perform in his college career?

Lonzo Ball joined the UCLA Bruins as the second-ranked prospect in the 2016 recruiting class. The five-star prospect lived up to the billing. He averaged 14.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.8 blocks per game while shooting 55.1% from the field, 41.2% from 3-point range and 67.3% from the free-throw line.

Ball was named a consensus first-team All-American while also being named to the first-team All-Pac-12. He was named as the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year while receiving the Wayman Tisdale Award as the nation's top freshman.

How has Lonzo Ball performed as a professional and will he be forced to retire early?

Lonzo Ball was drafted second overall in the 2017 NBA Draft by the LA Lakers. He was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans after just two seasons in a blockbuster deal that sent Anthony Davis to the Lakers. Ball lasted just two seasons in New Orleans before joining the Chicago Bulls in a sign-and-trade as a restricted free agent.

He has appeared in just 35 games over his two seasons in Chicago. The absences have unfortunately become a common theme in Ball's career as he has missed nearly half of the possible games in his career.

While on the court, he has averaged 11.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.6 blocks per game. Ball has shot 40.0% from the field, 36.4% from 3-point range and 57.8% from the free-throw line.

News recently broke, however, that the Bulls aren't confident he will ever take the court again.

Ball has had several knee surgeries, the most recent of which came in March 2023. After missing the past season and a half, Ball is expected to miss most, if not all, of the 2023-24 season. He holds a player option for the following season, however, it is unclear if he will be able to make his way back to the court.