There was once a time in Los Angeles Lakers history that Lonzo Ball was held in such high esteem that he was selected with the second overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft over Jayson Tatum. The Lakers made the wrong call then just as the Cleveland Cavaliers did during this past offseason.
Tatum blossomed into a bona fide superstar with the Boston Celtics, leading them to an NBA championship in 2024. In a way, Ball also helped the Lakers secure a title. When the opportunity came up, the former Lakers guard wound up as a pivotal part of bringing Anthony Davis to Los Angeles.
Ball became a good role player in the NBA. It was short of the expectations that came with his second overall draft positioning, but was far from a worst-case scenario. A brutal injury during 2021-22 threatened the career that was being carved out in the league.
Ball deserves plenty of kudos for returning to the court after several setbacks. Even so, the early returns of what his Cleveland stint has looked like are underwhelming. At this current rate, his NBA future is in serious jeopardy.
Lonzo Ball's struggles have only added to Cavaliers' disappointing season
The Cavaliers have fallen mightily short of the contender status awarded to them ahead of the 2025-26 season. At 15-13, not a whole lot is going right for the franchise.
Ball has not been the biggest problem in Cleveland. However, there are certainly elements of his campaign that have negatively affected the Cavaliers.
Ball's ability to put the ball in the basket has been next to non-existent. Scoring has never been the strongest part of his game — that would be his dynamic playmaking — but even so, it has looked unfit for the NBA level.
In 2025-26, Ball is scoring a career-low 5.4 points per game. The efficiency is even worse. The former Laker is shooting 28.8 percent from the field and 25.0 percent from beyond the arc. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to explain how poor both of those figures are.
The inability to reliably score the basketball is limiting Ball's offensive ceiling for the Cavaliers. The veteran guard ranks 12th on the team with an offensive rating of 109.0 in 2025-26 thus far.
Ball is still a solid passer and a capable defender. However, with his scoring standing out as such a glaring flaw in his game, one would hope his admirable comeback story is not short-lived in the process.