Bulls' Lonzo Ball could be an NBA All-Star in 2021-22

The Chicago Bulls made Lonzo Ball their No. 1 target in free agency, and if things break right, he could flirt with his first All-Star selection.

The Chicago Bulls targeted Lonzo Ball for a long time because they knew they needed an upgrade at point guard and that he would be an excellent fit next to Zach LaVine. The Bulls got their man right at the start of free agency, and they're confident he's going to be worth it even if they get punished for tampering. The guard is an ideal “ceiling raiser” on the Bulls thanks to his two-way skill set and basketball IQ.

But could Ball actually be an All-Star in 2021-22? That seems a bit far-fetched even after Ball's leap in 2020-21, but Ricky O'Donnell of Blue Wire's Cash Considerations pod thinks it could be in the cards if things go right:

“What jumped out to me about the preseason is how unselfish the team played, just tremendous ball movement. We can go piece by piece, but Lonzo looked so awesome. I think that we could potentially be in for a Lonzo Ball All-Star season, like Lonzo really making a jump up the NBA hierarchy. It'll be tough because he probably won't put up huge scoring numbers, but I think he's going to have a lot of highlight-reel plays. He was everywhere defensively. … Lonzo's defense is going to really help get this team in transition, and in transition the Bulls are going to be awesome.”

The likely lack of scoring will hurt Ball's case, plus the fact that previous All-Stars in Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic and DeMar DeRozan will garner attention if the Bulls are playing well. But even if Ball isn't actually an All-Star, he's in line to make All-Star impact on this Bulls team.

Listen to the full Cash Considerations episode here: