Chicago Bulls: 2 studs, 1 dud, from win over Pels in home opener
Chicago Bulls Stud No. 2: Lonzo Ball
There’s just no way that you could name any studs for the Bulls in this win over the Pelicans without mentioning the newly signed 23-year-old point guard Lonzo Ball. Facing his former team in the home opener heading into the weekend, Lonzo just had the performance of a lifetime. And this might be a performance that most truly don’t appreciate the significance of.
Executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley brought Lonzo in from the Pelicans by way of a big-time sign-and-trade deal during the offseason for the two-way impact he could bring to the table at the point guard position. And the way that Lonzo played on both ends of the floor for the Bulls in this win over the Pelicans was better than anyone could’ve expected.
In this win over his former team, Lonzo registered 17 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, three steals, one block, and no turnovers. And he shot 6-of-11 from the field, 3-of-8 from beyond the arc, and was perfect on two attempts from the free-throw line. That saw Lonzo post an assist percentage north of 36 and obviously a turnover percentage of 0. He also registered an insane 170 offensive rating in this game.
To follow-up to that stat, Nikola Jokic and Lonzo Ball are the only 2 players to have a triple-double with at least 2 steals, 1 block, and no turnovers in one game before the age of 24 in NBA history.
— Pippen Ain't Easy (@BullsBeatBlog) October 23, 2021
What made this performance from Lonzo so historic is the fact that he broke some interesting records. He is the first player in NBA history to have a triple-double with three different teams before the age of 24. And he is also one of two players in NBA history to have a triple-double with at least two steals, one block, and no turnovers, before the age of 24. Nikola Jokic is the other to do so.
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If Lonzo plays even close to the arena he was in for this win over his former team, this could be an awesome season for the Bulls. It is really looking like the Bulls found their point guard of the future in Lonzo, especially if he keeps playing the way he has since the start of the preseason.