It won't be long until the basketball world gets to see LeBron James and Lonzo Ball take the floor together as teammates for the very first time.
Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton told reporters prior to Saturday's preseason game against the Clippers that he expects Ball to make his return to action Wednesday against the Golden State Warriors at T-Mobile Arena, according to ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
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The Lakers have taken a cautious approach when it comes to their No. 2 overall pick from last year's draft. Walton said there was a chance Ball could have competed earlier in the week, but ultimately elected to give Ball a few more days to prepare.
"He's close. He's close," Walton said. "And again, it's just us playing it safe right now ... So it just felt like the right thing to do. So, he's getting real close.
"We got a nice chance to really get him where we want him and it just felt right to not try to make it happen tonight (Saturday)."
Ball underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his left knee back in July, with the expectation he'd be fully recovered for the start of training camp. He was initially held out of five-on-five scrimmages, and only recently began engaging in full-contact practices.
The 20-year-old point guard was named a member of the All-Rookie second team last year, averaging 10.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 7.2 assists in 34.2 minutes across 52 games. Ball missed 15 outings after spraining the medial collateral ligament in his knee in January and then sat the final eight games after getting kneed in the back of his leg.