Lakers Rumors: Lonzo Ball Camp Leaked Knee Injury News to Prevent Trade

Lonzo Ball's knee injury may have been leaked by people within his camp. 

During the most recent episode of The Woj Pod, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski noted the Los Angeles Lakers "didn't want" that injury news coming out and "there's a belief around" the team that people within Ball's orbit discussed it with the media. 

Yahoo Sports' Shams Charania reported on June 29 that Ball has a torn meniscus in his left knee that was diagnosed at the end of the regular season. 

Ball's injury is considered to be minor and shouldn't prevent him from being ready for the start of the 2018-19 season.

Wojnarowski added that Ball "may require surgery" to fix his meniscus. 

Also in the podcast discussion, Wojnarowski said the Lakers "want win-now guys" and that one of the reasons they agreed to a one-year deal with Rajon Rondo was to "challenge" Ball. 

The Lakers made the biggest splash of the offseason by agreeing to terms with LeBron James on a four-year deal worth $154 million, as Klutch Sports Group announced. 

And the Lakers have been engaged in trade talks with the San Antonio Spurs for Kawhi Leonard. 

Spectrum SportsNet's Larry Coon said Monday the Spurs' most recent request includes Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, two first-round draft picks and swapping two more draft picks.

Ball, who is from just outside of Los Angeles and went to high school in Chino Hills, was selected No. 2 overall by the Lakers in 2017. The 20-year-old averaged 10.2 points, 7.2 assists and 6.9 rebounds per game as a rookie, though he was limited to 52 games because of injuries.