The Chicago Bulls are trading Lonzo Ball to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Isaac Okoro, according to sources from ESPN.
This season, Ball, who is 27 years old, averaged 7.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists. In March 2023, he had a meniscus and cartilage transplant in his left knee after multiple attempts to heal an injury from the 2021-22 season, which was his first year with the Bulls.
He has been out since early March due to a sprained right wrist and played in only 35 games this season after missing the entire 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.
For the Cavaliers, bringing in Ball gives them a tall point guard who plays fast and defends well at 6-foot-6 as they prepare to lose Ty Jerome to another team in free agency.
As they head into the 2025-26 season about $12 million over the salary cap’s second apron—and with All-Star Evan Mobley set to receive a $45 million bonus on his rookie maximum contract—Ball’s two-year contract worth $20 million (with a team option for 2026-27) becomes easier to manage.
Cavaliers president of basketball operations Koby Altman and his team have been interested in Ball for months; they asked about him during the February trade deadline before finalizing the deal on Saturday.
Additionally, free agent guard Sam Merrill plans to sign a four-year contract worth $38 million to stay with the Cavaliers, sources told ESPN.
Cavaliers All-Star guard Darius Garland recently had surgery on his left big toe, which bothered him during the playoffs, and he is expected to be out for four to five months.
The Cavs stated that they anticipate Garland will “make a full recovery and resume basketball activities by training camp” in October. However, it is likely that he will miss some time at the start of the regular season, sources informed ESPN.
