Zach LaVine reportedly will undergo surgery after struggling with soreness and swelling in his left knee throughout the 2021-22 season.
LaVine will undergo arthroscopic surgery to address the injury — which flared up in January — and is expected to fully recover this summer, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
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LaVine previously tore the ACL in his left knee in 2017, creating further concern about any discomfort. He missed the final two games before the All-Star break to receive treatment, which included injections of cortisone and platelet-rich plasma.
Although LaVine played through the injury after the All-Star break, the discomfort significantly limited his movement and forced the Chicago Bulls star to take games off throughout the latter third of the season.
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LaVine started the season with injury concerns after he tore a ligament in his thumb. Those misfortunes continued through the final game of the postseason, which the guard missed after testing positive for COVID-19 for the third time in the last year.
Despite juggling injuries and illness, LaVine recorded a stalwart season for the Bulls alongside DeMar DeRozan, earning his second-straight All-Star selection while averaging 24.4 points and 4.5 assists.
LaVine wouldn’t commit to a Chicago return next season during his exit interview in April. He hits the market as an unrestricted free agent for the first time this summer on the heels of his eighth NBA season — and first winning season.
“I’ve been here for the past five years. I have to do this as a business decision, as a man, just to not be viewing it one way,” LaVine said. “It’s unrestricted free agency. For my family, for me, I have to go and look at this as a decision where I have to be open-eyed. I have to make my list and talk to everybody.”
