Chicago Bulls' Lonzo Ball to undergo knee surgery, out 6-8 weeks

Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball will have arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and is expected to miss six to eight weeks, the team announced Thursday.

ESPN and the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Ball will travel to California in the coming days to undergo the knee procedure to repair a meniscus tear.

Ball's agent, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, and the Bulls discussed additional options with doctors, but the surgery was deemed necessary after Ball was unable to play through the knee ailment, according to ESPN. The knee injury was described as a slight meniscus tear.

Ball has missed the Bulls' past three games with what the team initially called a bone bruise. Chicago had already ruled him out for its upcoming three-game road swing because his knee wasn't recovering from the initial treatment.

The 24-year-old Ball underwent surgery for a meniscus tear on the same knee in July 2018, but he returned for the start of training camp with the Los Angeles Lakers.

In his first season with the Bulls, Ball has averaged 13 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. He is averaging a career-high 34.6 minutes per game over his 35 appearances for the team this year.

Ball, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft out of UCLA, has averaged 11.9 points and 6.2 assists across 252 career games with the New Orleans Pelicans, Lakers and Bulls.