The Chicago Bulls received some brutal news on Tuesday night after it was revealed that Lonzo Ball could be shut down for the remainder of the season due to a lingering knee problem.

This report comes via NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic:

Sources: Bulls guard Lonzo Ball is expected to be shut down for the remainder of the season. Ball has been rehabbing from meniscus surgery in late January, but continues to feel discomfort amid several recovery methods to return to action and a bone bruise in his knee.

Ball has been out of action for the Bulls since mid-January due to a torn meniscus on his knee. He underwent surgery and was initially expected to miss anywhere between six to eight weeks. This clearly was not the case with the 24-year-old struggling with his rehab.

It is worth noting, however, that per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Bulls have yet to make a final decision on Ball's injury:

There is still a final decision to be made, but there's less and less optimism that Lonzo Ball will return this season, sources tell ESPN. As Billy Donovan said, there's a conversation among the Bulls and Ball's reps in the coming days.

As the above report states, Bulls head coach Billy Donovan said that Ball “experienced some discomfort” on his knee when they tried ramping up his workload in rehab. This is under the assumption that Chicago was working to get Ball back for the playoffs.