The Past, The Future, The Hopeful: The Lonzo Ball Story

Imagine you're on top of the world. Everyone knows your name. People are infatuated with your skillset on the hardwood. And then, in a snap… your future isn’t what it was supposed to be.

UCLA alum Lonzo Ball should be setting records and contributing to championship teams. Instead, he’s become one of the greatest cases of “what if?” the sport has ever seen.

It starts in Westwood, where Ball became a phenom and the hype machine was in full swing.

His dad, LaVar, was all over the news telling everyone how great his sons (and he) were — sometimes to many people’s dismay. But it was hard to take your eyes off the Cali kid who was playing for the school he’d always dreamed of.

Prior to Ball’s arrival, UCLA was a program in despair. They went 15-17, with the historic Final Four runs of the 2000s long in the rearview.

Then Ball came along with T.J. Leaf, and as freshmen, they helped UCLA soar to a 31-5 record.

The game came easy to Ball — and he looked the part. He had a cool, calm, and collected vibe to him, unlike his boisterous father, and made the game look effortless with crisp passes and timely buckets. He averaged 14.6 points, 7.6 assists, six rebounds, 1.8 steals per game, and shot 41% from three.

This kid could do it all.

Which is why the Los Angeles Lakers — then led by Magic Johnson as Executive Vice President — took him second overall in the 2017 NBA Draft.

He came with a clunky shooting form, but it was fixable. He loaded up from across his body and had an awkward release. At the NBA level, the shot wasn’t falling like it did in college, so something had to change.

After playing every game in college, injuries at the pro level swarmed him. He missed 65 games out of a possible 164 with the Lakers.

Los Angeles is a brutal market for its professional sports teams, and Ball underperforming — albeit with glimpses of hope — wasn’t cutting it for the Laker faithful.

He, along with Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and a few picks, was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans for Anthony Davis.

In the Big Easy, Ball thrived. He formed a top-notch connection with prodigy Zion Williamson, filled with electric alley-oops, and developed his shot with coach Fred Vinson, becoming a 38% three-point shooter.

Along the way, injuries still plagued him. New Orleans — cautious of his long-term health — didn’t offer a contract extension, leading to a sign-and-trade with the Chicago Bulls. There, he inked a four-year, $88 million deal.

It seemed like the perfect fit. Throw lobs to Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan while draining threes at an elite clip?

Hard not to believe in that.

Thirty-five games in, it was perfect. He was shooting 42% from deep, and he and LaVine formed an immaculate connection.

But then… injuries struck again. And this time, it got worse.

He missed the rest of the 2021–22 season with a knee injury. Then the next one. And the next.

Ball’s career hung in the balance.

Until he came back in the middle of the 2024–25 season and fared decently. Many thought his career was over, but Ball won’t give up on his dream. He averaged 7.6 points and 3.3 assists — a far cry from what he was.

Still, Ball can serve a purpose on a team — even a young one looking to take the next step toward greatness.

The trajectory of his career may have changed. But Lonzo Ball won’t be denied.

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