Lonzo Ball, the former second overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, is reportedly on the move, heading to his fourth NBA team. Following four seasons plagued by injuries with the Chicago Bulls, he is set to join the Cleveland Cavaliers in a deal involving Isaac Okoro, a former lottery pick known primarily for his defense but inconsistent shooting.
Cleveland, coming off a 64-win regular season but disappointed by a five-game second-round loss against the Indiana Pacers, sought to shake up their roster despite significant luxury tax challenges. They`ve now done so by acquiring Ball. The Bulls, conversely, add a defensive piece to last season`s 19th-ranked defense while aiming for a younger, healthier roster. With these factors in mind, let`s evaluate this trade.
Cleveland Cavaliers: A-
The only reason this isn`t an `A` grade for Cleveland is Ball`s concerning medical history. He previously missed two full seasons due to knee issues, and last year, his comeback season, he played only 35 games. This acquisition carries significant risk. There`s a real possibility Ball might not be healthy enough to contribute meaningfully when it matters most. Even if he is available, his minutes will likely require careful management. He averaged 22.2 minutes last season and didn`t play in back-to-back games, a pattern that will likely continue.
However, Cleveland had a player with a somewhat similar profile last season in Ty Jerome. Despite his own injury history, Jerome was a Sixth Man of the Year candidate while averaging fewer minutes per game (19.9) than Ball. This suggests a potential role for Ball. Jerome is an impending free agent, and with Cleveland already exceeding the second apron before re-signing him, his departure seems highly probable.
Through this trade, Cleveland potentially fills the void left by Jerome and achieves some salary savings: Ball is set to earn $10 million this year compared to Okoro`s $11 million, and Ball`s 2026-27 salary is non-guaranteed via a team option, while Okoro`s $11.8 million for that season is guaranteed. While this doesn`t fully resolve their second apron issues, the Cavaliers are clearly in a championship window. This is the time to invest, and they`ve addressed a significant need while simultaneously reducing payroll. That`s a major positive.
Now, let`s consider what Ball brings on the court. He won`t replicate Jerome`s scoring. He avoids attacking the basket and isn`t quite as skilled a shooter, though he has made significant improvements since his early struggles with the Lakers. Cleveland gains two crucial elements with Ball that Jerome didn`t provide. First is exceptional all-around defense. Second, and perhaps more vital for Cleveland, is brilliance in transition. The Cavaliers were 10th in pace last season but only 19th in fast-break points and 28th in passes per game. This isn`t to suggest a deficiency in Cleveland`s top-ranked offense but highlights areas for potential enhancement. Ball introduces an element of speed and unpredictability that should add a new dimension to their game.
Is losing Okoro a setback? Yes, somewhat. He was arguably Cleveland`s best perimeter defender during the regular season. However, playoff performances consistently show that opponents often disregard him on the perimeter, making him too much of an offensive liability to keep. This trade will increase defensive pressure on players like De`Andre Hunter and Max Strus. Cleveland will heavily rely on Dean Wade staying consistently healthy, which he has historically struggled to do, to maintain a championship-level defense.
These health concerns surrounding role players on a 64-win team are notable, but manageable. Cleveland has the capacity to better manage minutes during the regular season than many teams, with the hope of reaching the playoffs healthy. If they can achieve this, the Cavaliers remain strong contenders in the Eastern Conference, especially with rivals like Boston and Indiana facing their own challenges. Ball represents nearly an ideal replacement for Jerome for Cleveland.
Chicago Bulls: C-
What is it with the Bulls consistently trading valuable, versatile role players to contenders for former lottery picks that those teams seem eager to offload? This deal isn`t as poor as the Alex Caruso-for-Josh Giddey swap, but it follows a similar pattern. The Bulls started the offseason with a highly regarded supporting piece and exchanged him for a younger player with theoretical potential, but who struggles with shooting and appeared to have limited appeal to most other teams. It`s likely multiple teams inquired about Ball. Was this truly the best package the Bulls could acquire? Similar to the Caruso trade, they apparently didn`t even secure a single draft pick alongside this questionable player swap?
Chicago undeniably needed stronger perimeter defense. The Bulls ranked 19th in overall defense but, more critically, 25th in points per play allowed in the half-court, according to Cleaning the Glass. They possess enough youth and athleticism to mitigate damage in transition, but last season, when they needed crucial stops in settled situations, they often couldn`t get them. Okoro will offer assistance in this area. He`s generally considered a more reliable health option than Ball. And statistically, he has been an above-average 3-point shooter for the past three seasons.
The problem, of course, is that statistics alone don`t tell the whole story. A player`s shooting volume typically dictates how aggressively defenses guard them, and Okoro rarely shoots, primarily taking only wide-open looks. Such opportunities were abundant within Cleveland`s dominant offense. How will Okoro fare offensively when Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland aren`t consistently creating those shots for him? Like the Cavaliers, the Bulls took a high volume of 3-pointers last season. The key difference was Cleveland leading the league in true shooting percentage while Chicago hovered around the league average. Now, with Okoro potentially hindering spacing, things become more challenging. At a minimum, he overlaps with Patrick Williams, who was drafted just one spot ahead of Okoro in the 2020 NBA Draft. Williams also fits the profile of an athletic defensive forward lacking a consistent shot.
If one attempts to discern Chicago`s overarching roster strategy, one can observe some broad parallels to how the Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers constructed their team. Like the Bulls, the Pacers have shown a propensity for acquiring former lottery picks that their original teams were ready to move on from. Perhaps the Bulls are hoping Okoro can develop into their version of Aaron Nesmith, a young wing who didn`t make shots with his first team but improved significantly with his second. Josh Giddey shares vague similarities with Tyrese Haliburton as a dynamic passer and transition player who often prioritizes creating for others over his own shot. There`s an emphasis on individual creation and athleticism here. They seem to favor a fast pace.
However, the success of this building approach hinges on selecting the *right* specific players. It`s insufficient for Giddey to merely be *like* Haliburton; he must generate team offense at a similarly dominant level. Chicago`s offense did perform well in March and April, but those months are often unreliable indicators of future performance, as the Bulls faced numerous bad, tanking teams. Nesmith struggled with shooting in Boston, but he was marketed as a shooter during the draft process and had a more extensive track record than Okoro currently does.
The Bulls have not won a playoff series since Arturas Karnisovas took charge in 2020. They don`t have Rick Carlisle as their coach. They haven`t earned the same benefit of the doubt that Indiana receives, as the Pacers have been significantly more successful over the past 25 years with considerably fewer resources. Neither team seems inclined towards a prolonged tank, but the Pacers` strong organizational history of building competitively from the middle allows them to pursue that path successfully. The Bulls lack this track record. While they might be attempting to emulate the Pacers, without the deep-rooted infrastructure and expertise that has guided Indiana for so long, it appears more like mimicking a sound than truly internalizing the lessons from one of the league`s most intelligent teams.
Jasper Hawthorne