The Bulls fight back from the crisis with a comeback victory in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The last two years haven't been easy for guard Lonzo Ball — he spent many nights on the couch, watching his Bulls teammates struggle from afar.

Although he is still on minute guard after returning from a marathon saga with his left knee, he is now playing with the team again. And as Monday's 126-123 comeback win over the Grizzlies showed, his play and his voice still carry weight.

Thanks to 23 points from the bench in the third quarter, the Bulls overcame a 20-point deficit to win, and although Ball only had six points and six assists, he scored an impressive 16 in 18 minutes. Coach Billy Donovan elevated him after the Play particularly stood out, which meant a lot to him.

“These are my brothers, and any time they have to go to war and I can't help them, you're going to have some feeling for that,” Ball said. “I know my minutes are limited right now, but my Mood is good. When I’m out there, I’m going to do my best and do whatever it takes to get wins.”

Early Monday, victory seemed in doubt. The Bulls (2-2) got a gift early in the game: Grizzlies All-Star guard Ja Morant wore street clothes after nursing a sore thigh during pregame warmups. But the bulls failed to capitalize. A driving layup from Jaren Jackson Jr. and a three-pointer from Desmond Bane immediately greeted them. Within the first three minutes they were already down by 14 points.

One Bull that stepped up in the first half was center Nikola Vucevic, who kept them within striking distance with 15 points, including 3-for-5 shooting from three-point range, while tying with 7-4 Grizzlies center Zach Edey explained. Vucevic got an early preview of Edey, a Rookie of the Year candidate, in a preseason game this month.

“Good player,” said Vucevic. “I liked him in college, but for me it was about how he could adapt his game to the speed at the NBA level. I saw him in college and he played a lot different, but I like what I've seen so far. Even in preseason he's bigger and stronger than I thought he would be. I think this is a good team for him because they have a lot of defenders who can put him in a good position. I think he’ll have a good career in the NBA.”

Edey had six points in the end.

As bad as the first half was, the Bulls flipped a switch midway through the third quarter and had the bench to thank. With the Bulls trailing by 16 with just 3:44 left in the quarter, Jalen Smith, Julian Phillips and Ayo Dosunmu turned up the heat and closed the deficit to four in just over three minutes.

Then it was finally the starters’ turn. A floater from Vucevic and a three-pointer from Zach LaVine reduced the deficit to just 7:37 minutes left. With 5:02 left, another three-pointer from LaVine, who passed Bane with a game-high 30 points, gave the Bulls a lead of eight.

They sent Josh Giddey to the free throw line down the stretch. Giddey did enough, and when Bane missed the game-winning three-pointer in the final seconds, it was over.