Lonzo Ball‘s future with the New Orleans Pelicans will be the biggest offseason topic for the team and one of the biggest in the NBA.
All season we’ve talked about Lonzo Ball’s future contract and argued the pros and cons of giving him a fat extension in the offseason.
We’ve broken it down in every way imaginable, even taking a close look at his value compared to that of Josh Hart.
Which one should the Pelicans keep? The argument is closer than you might think.
But one thing that has not been talked about much is Lonzo Ball’s injury history, which is now starting to get a little bit troubling.
Lonzo missed his 14th game of the season last night and the team is still not sure when he’ll be back. The Pelicans could desperately use his scoring and playmaking right now, so his absence is hurting any chance they had of making the play-in game.
Will this most recent injury affect how the New Orleans Pelicans and other teams around the NBA view Lonzo Ball as a long-term piece?
New Orleans Pelicans: Lonzo Ball’s injury history
If you look at Lonzo Ball’s statistics for the season you’ll see that he is having one of his best years as a professional.
But the thing that really stands out is games played, as Lonzo is racking up the DNP’s due to a nagging injury to his hip that has affected him off and on all season.
This isn’t anything new, as Lonzo Ball has yet to play a complete season in the NBA and has missed time in all of them due to injury.
Few players play every game in a season, so it is not alarming that Lonzo Ball has missed a few games, but when you look at his overall history, it is something to consider for teams that might want to offer him $20 million per season.
Lonzo played just 52 games in his first season, 47 in the second, 63 last season (his fewest games missed) and just 41 of the 55 games in this one.
If you are looking at giving Lonzo Ball a big contract, this has to be taken into account, as you might end up paying a guy big bucks who has yet to show he can stay healthy for a full season in the NBA.
If Lonzo Ball continues to miss games, this will almost certainly affect how teams view him and it might lower the offers teams are willing to make.
This might make it easier for the New Orleans Pelicans to retain him but might also make them pause before doing so.