NBA grants Bulls exception worth over $10 million for Lonzo Ball injury

The league has acquiesced to the Chicago Bulls‘ request for a disabled player exception as a result of point guard Lonzo Ball‘s knee injury, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The ailment has kept Ball shelved since January of 2022 and has required three surgeries to date. Earlier this summer, team president Arturas Karnisovas indicated that the team expected him to miss all of the 2023/24 NBA season.

Ball will earn $20.46M this season, meaning his DPE will be worth $10.23M – which Chicago could use to add a new free agent, bring in a player off waivers or retrieve someone as part of a trade.

As K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago notes, the Bulls are currently under the luxury tax heading into this season, but above the league’s salary cap. Should the team be inclined to make bigger moves beyond adding a veteran’s minimum signing or two and retaining restricted free agent Ayo Dosunmu, the disabled player exception could be a powerful mechanism.

Ball underwent a cartilage transplant surgery in March to correct his knee issues, in what Johnson suggests was generally thought to be a final bid to salvage his pro career.

Since joining the Bulls on a four-year, $80M contract in a sign-and-trade with the New Orleans Pelicans, the former No. 2 lottery pick has appeared in just 35 contests. He was a highly-effective perimeter defender, passer and three-point shooter (42.3% on 7.4 attempts) for Chicago when healthy and a big part of the team’s surprise success through the first half of the 2021-22 season.

While trying to replace his production at the position piecemeal, the Bulls have underwhelmed in Ball’s absence.