Lonzo Ball, now a guard for the Chicago Bulls, has nothing but great memories of his time with his local team, the Los Angeles Lakers, despite the enormous pressure, the injuries, and the underachieving seasons. While his time with the Lakers did not end well, dynamic two-way guard Trae Young noted on his podcast that it was still a dream come true to wear the purple and gold.

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Lonzo has spent his entire life in the Golden State. From his early days in Chino Hills, where he was a rising star before he took his game to UCLA, Ball had big dreams. That’s why the Lakers selecting him with the second overall pick in 2017 was so appropriate. Not everything went smoothly for him in his debut year, though; he had to miss 30 games because of shoulder and knee issues.

In Lonzo’s second year, seasoned veterans like LeBron James and Rajon Rondo joined the team. Lonzo Ball’s second season was cut short to 47 games due to recurring ailments, and the Lakers eventually shut him down for the rest of the season in March of 2018.

The team’s potential was clearly seen, especially with the presence of young talents like Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram, so this was a major letdown. The next year, Lonzo was part of a trade that sent many players to New Orleans in exchange for All-Star center Anthony Davis.

Lonzo claims that the team’s mentality shifted with LeBron and Rajon on the roster, but that they were unable to fully capitalize on the shift due to injuries sustained by several key players, including LeBron.