In the past months, rumors have been continuously swirling around Lonzo Ball and his future with the New Orleans Pelicans. Before the 2021 trade deadline, multiple signs were pointing out that the Pelicans would be trading the former No. 2 overall pick. Though he’s perfectly fit with the timeline of franchise cornerstones Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, there were speculations that the Pelicans didn’t have any interest in giving Ball a massive contract in the 2021 free agency.
Unfortunately, after interested teams failed to meet their asking price, the Pelicans were left with no choice but to keep Ball for the remainder of the 2020-21 NBA season.
Lonzo Ball Still Determined To Leave Pelicans
After the 2021 trade deadline, Ball and the Pelicans are currently focused on keeping their playoffs hope alive in the 2020-21 NBA season. The Pelicans may be out of the playoff race, but they are only three wins behind the Western Conference No. 8 seed Dallas Mavericks. However, rumors still continue to circulate around the young point guard.
In a Twitter post, Evan Massey of NBA Analysis Network revealed what an agent said about Ball’s plan in the 2021 offseason.
“Lonzo enjoys playing for the Pelicans but isn’t a fan of New Orleans. However, he really wants to end up with the #Knicks or #Bulls. That has been a dream of his. It’s likely he will try to leave this offseason.”
Why Lonzo Ball Doesn’t Want To Stay In New Orleans
Though he has shown a massive improvement with his game in his second season with the Pelicans, there are indeed growing speculations around the league that Ball isn’t interested in staying long-term in New Orleans. One of the major reasons why Ball reportedly wanted out of the Pelicans is his current role.
With the presence of ball-dominant players like Ingram and Williamson in New Orleans, Lonzo’s father, LaVar Ball, previously said in an appearance on ESPN LA 710 that the former No. 2 overall pick was forced to play off the ball instead of being the team’s primary playmaker.
Bulls Interested In Acquiring Lonzo Ball
The Chicago Bulls would definitely love to hear that they are one of Ball’s preferred landing spots in the 2021 offseason. The Bulls’ interest in adding Ball to their roster is real. After they successfully acquired Nikola Vucevic from the Orlando Magic before the 2021 trade deadline, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN revealed on Twitter that the Bulls were in pursuit of Ball.
The Bulls may have failed to land Ball this season, but they are highly expected to chase him once again in the 2021 free agency.
Lonzo Ball To Big Apple
Meanwhile, it’s no longer surprising that the New York Knicks are also included on Ball’s ideal destinations in the 2021 free agency. Like the Bulls, Ball was also heavily linked to the Knicks before the 2021 trade deadline. Though they also failed to acquire Ball via trade, the Knicks are expected to do everything they can to steal him from the Pelicans in the 2021 offseason.
With plenty of salary cap room, the Knicks are one of the few teams in the league that is in a position to give the $ 20 million per season that Ball’s camp is expected to demand in free agency.
