The Chicago Bulls were surrounded by the Memphis Grizzlies on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, losing the third blow in the span of four games. As ugly as the result, the play looked even worse, especially without Chicago's Lonzo Ball in a futile offensive effort.
The Bulls are already without Zach LaVine, although his MRI results were cleared after he suffered a knee injury against the Golden State Warriors last week. But head coach Billy Donovan's team still falls short of its starting point guard.
Without the ball, the Bulls looked hopeless against a relentless Grizzlies defense.
Lonzo Ball has missed each of the last two matches
Lonzo Ball has soreness in his knee joint that he's been dealing with for some time, Billy Donovan says.
— Cody Westerlund (@CodyWesterlund) January 16, 2022
The expectation is Ball will be doubtful to play Monday at Memphis, Donovan says. So he's not quite considering it a day-to-day injury.
Lonzo Ball has been in and out of the Bulls' rotation to some extent for the past three-plus weeks.
For a long time, Ball appeared as the only player from Chicago who was able to evade the NBA's health and safety protocols. But he, too, hit the shelves on December 26, just days after he made comments about how he managed to stay away from COVID-19.
Ball returned to the Bulls on January 3. However, it is largely unknown to the public that he was already experiencing some problems with his left knee.
The Chino Hills native came on injury reports and was eventually "out" for a January 15 matchup with the Boston Celtics. Donovan said before the game that according to Cody Westerlund of 670 The Score, Ball felt pain in his knee joint "for some time" and that Chicago planned to give him extended rest.
Indeed, during Monday's game against the Grizzlies, the ball once again sat down. The Bulls played some sloppy basketball without their floor general.
Bulls exposed without ball
Chicago had 12 turnovers in the first half and 17 turnovers in the first three quarters. The Bulls could not control the rock in the first quarter, having eight goodies for the period. Memphis exposed the Chicago team's lack of depth and assurance on the offensive end. Lonzo Ball's absence was huge.
Although Ball isn't the most used man, his vision forces the defense to stay upright and not gamble so much in the passing lanes, which the Grizzlies excel at doing. Additionally, his shooting prowess spreads the floor and opens things up more for Dimar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevi. Not so coincidentally, Ball's continued absence had a particularly massive impact on those in Memphis.
DeRozan did a couple of ugly turnovers in the first quarter and could possibly be credited with four. He shot a 2-of-8 in the second quarter. Vusevic - who was actually a real positive in the midst of Chicago's losing streak - took just four shots throughout the first half and ended the competition a disappointing 2 for 13 off the field.
The opening backcourt also struggled without a ball. Coby White occasionally engaged the Bulls with his scoring but failed to come back in the transition and lost while defending off the cliff. Ayo Dosunmu put on a two-pronged and strong defense on Ja Morante, yet he made four turnovers.
The Bulls were always going to contend with so many people who are still unavailable. But a shaky performance against an energetic, active and flamboyant Grizzlies squad shows the need to get the ball back to the floor especially as quickly as possible.
Can the Bulls Weather the Hurricane?
After four consecutive defeats, the Bulls have crashed to the surface. They now find themselves in a tie at the Eastern Conference with a red-hot Miami Heat team that looks even more dangerous with Bam Adebayo in the lineup.
Can Chicago stop the skid and get rejuvenated? Possibly. Reinforcements are on the way. Alex Caruso and Javonte Greene may return with the Cleveland Cavaliers for Wednesday's date. They must inject the Bulls with energy and defensive effort.
Still, the Bulls don't have a specific timeline for either Ball or LaVine. Until there is more clarity on those fronts, Chicago should clean things up and find more unity on both ends of the floor.