As the 2022-23 season progressed, we had the chance to learn a great deal about the state of the Chicago Bulls’ backcourt this season, as Alex Caruso, Ayo Dosunmu, Patrick Beverley, and Coby White each had plenty of opportunities to start and play heavy minutes for the Bulls this year. Even Clippers star forward Paul George had a few interesting comments to make about the Bulls backcourt himself, in fact, on his self-titled podcast, Podcast P.
It wasn’t Caruso, Coby, or Ayo that was the subject of his attention, but rather the injury report staple Lonzo Ball himself. When comparing the abilities of the NBA’s two Ball brothers, George had nothing short of a glowing review to offer Lonzo.
"“Actually, I would say Lonzo [has] more pure talent than LaMelo,” George said. “What can’t Lonzo do? He can guard, can shoot, can play make, his IQ, he can rebound great for his position.”"
You can watch the full 8-minute podcast below, which I believe is well worth the listen after the Clippers’ postseason elimination.
You don’t have to take my word for it, even Paul George understands that the loss of Lonzo Ball has crippled the Chicago Bulls’ dreams of contention.
Although this might seem like a ludicrous statement to make, I don’t think George is all that far off in his claims here. Lonzo may be a top-three talent in any one skill, but he’s top-ten in enough of them to make him possibly the most well-rounded point guard in the league.
Chicago was clearly league better with Ball on the court, with a 22-13 record on pace for 51.5 wins with him, while going 64-65 without him since the start of last season. His 13 points and 5.1 rebounds per game may not seem impossible to replace, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
The fact that Ball was one of the league’s premiere shooters (42.3% on 7.4 attempts per game), possibly the best playmaker in transition, a very solid rebounder for his position, and an All-Defensive Team caliber defender makes him the ultimate complementary player. The only area in his game he struggles with is creating his own offense, but if you already have the offensive firepower on your roster, Ball is like every head coach’s dream come true.
As they say, however, availability is the best ability. Of the 472 regular season games his teams have played since being drafted second overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, Ball has suited up for just 252 of them (53.4%).
For that reason, it may not be that surprising to see George stick up for Ball, considering he’s also dealt with more than his fair share of injury setbacks since coming to the NBA. Lonzo and PG13 are both extremely well-rounded players that have played important roles for quality teams, but have never quite gotten over the hump and enjoyed the playoff success they would have liked due to their own physical shortcomings.
Hopefully, each of these incredible talents will be granted the opportunity to finish their careers out strong. The NBA is a better place with them in it, and something tells me they still have plenty left in the tank to offer.