Is Lonzo Ball playing for the Chicago Bulls tonight against the Cavaliers? (Updated)
The Chicago Bulls will make their 2024-25 NBA season debut tonight in a road preseason game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
It will mark the first game following DeMar DeRozan's departure to Sacramento and the Alex Caruso trade that brought Josh Giddey to Chicago.
The Bulls are dipping their toes into a full rebuild, but either haven't - or can't - dive in completely.
Still, tonight's game in Cleveland will offer head coach Billy Donovan an opportunity to play with several different lineup combinations, whether centered around potential franchise building blocks like Giddey, Coby White and Matas Buzelis or configured around veterans like Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic as they prepare for the regular season.
Maybe the biggest question of all, though, is whether Lonzo Ball will be an option for Donovan at some point against Cleveland.
Is Lonzo Ball playing for the Bulls tonight against the Cavaliers?
Giddey is listed as day-to-day with an ankle injury but is likely to play against Cleveland, per Will Gottlieb of CHGO Sports.
It appears Ball is more of a game-time decision.
The 26-year-old has been a participant in training camp and continues to ramp up toward getting back on an NBA floor for the first time in two-and-a-half years. Considering the risk of yet another injury, though, there's no reason to rush him into the first preseason game.
That's where Donovan's head is at as well, as the Bulls coach said Ball could potentially play, but "there's more of a ramp up he thinks Ball requires," according to Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic.
The rest of Chicago's roster is healthy and ready to go.
This story will be updated when Ball's status is officially revealed before game time.
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Ball is officially listed as out for the game against the Cavaliers. He's expected to play at some point this preseason, barring any setbacks.