“I love you”: Bulls’ Lonzo Ball celebrates girlfriend Ally Rossel's 26th birthday with sweet video montage

Chicago Bulls star guard Lonzo Ball is recovering from a serious knee injury that has sidelined him since January 2022. It is unclear when Ball will be able to make his return to the NBA after undergoing three knee surgeries, however, he remains optimistic that he will be able to play again.

Amid his recovery, Ball enjoys life off the court and on Friday he took to Instagram and posted a video to celebrate his girlfriend Ally Rossel's 26th birthday. The video montage included some of the couple's best moments together, as the 26-year-old guard wanted to wish happy birthday to his girlfriend.

"Happy Birthday my love, I love you. Big 26," Ball's video caption wrote.

Lonzo Ball and his girlfriend Ally Rossel

Lonzo Ball expects to return to the Chicago Bulls lineup for the 2024-25 season

Lonzo Ball is still recovering from the third knee surgery he underwent a few months ago. The Chicago Bulls have ruled him out for the entire 2023-24 season, but Ball remains confident he will be able to play next season.

At the moment, Ball has targeted the start of the 2024-25 season for his return, as he hasn't experienced any setbacks in his recovery yet.

"After the other surgeries, this one has definitely gone the best as far as [the] recovery process. The last two rehab processes I had, I was getting better and then it just hit a standstill and it started going down. And I haven't hit that yet," Lonzo Ball told media in early October, via ESPN.

"(I feel) pretty good. About halfway through the rehab process. Got a long ways ahead of me, but each week I've been progressing, I'm just trying to stay positive and take it day by day.

"I definitely plan on playing again. I'm only 25 and I felt like the rehab process is going well so far... it's just keeping my head up and keep going to work," he added.

So far, the Chicago Bulls have struggled to cover his absence, with Coby White and Alex Caruso not playing at the level that Ball was playing before his injury.

Lonzo Ball had averages of 13.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 5.1 apg and 1.8 spg before his injury. The Bulls continue to struggle this season with just nine wins in their first 23 games.