Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball met the family of the late Alex Reinhardt, whose knee cartilage was donated to Ball in a transplant two years ago.
Before Wednesday’s game against the Miami Heat, Ball signed jerseys and took photos with Alex’s mother, father, two brothers, and soon-to-be sister-in-law. The meeting, near the Bulls’ bench, was emotional for Angie Reinhardt, who described the experience as “extremely emotional” but full of happiness.
“It’s been extremely emotional,” she said. “So much happiness comes with it, too. All of the people that are donor recipients of Alex’s, we’re just blessed. We’ve had mothers from some people that have said things. Now we get to meet Lonzo. It’s just a blessing to be able to watch people do well with their knees or anything because of Alex. Of course, we wish he was here.”
Alex Reinhardt, who passed away at 20 in February 2023, was known for his love of fast-paced activities like skiing, tubing, and sports like football and wrestling.
The Reinhardt family was contacted by the donor network about an athlete who had received Alex’s tissue. It was later revealed to be Ball, who had undergone a meniscus and cartilage transplant in March 2023 after a knee injury that kept him out of the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.
While Ball was sidelined Wednesday with a sprained wrist, Angie Reinhardt expressed gratitude: “To be able to keep helping people after his death really feels like a blessing to all of us”.
