NBA
Lakers’ Jarred Vanderbilt Set To Make Season Debut Saturday
Vivek Jacob is a freelance sports writer with over seven years experience. During this time, he has written for outlets including The Athletic, Yahoo Sports, Sportsnet, CBC, and Complex. Primarily covering the NBA, Vivek also covers tennis, soccer, and cricket.
All posts by Vivek JacobUpdated1 hour ago on January 22, 2025
Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt has been medically cleared to make his season debut on Saturday, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports.
Saturday marks the beginning of a six-game road trip for the Lakers, with the Golden State Warriors first up.
At 23-18 and clinging onto the final guaranteed playoff spot in the West, the Lakers will welcome Vanderbilt’s return with open arms.
Long Road Back
Vanderbilt suffered a foot injury last February and underwent two procedures in the offseason, one on each foot. He had initially hoped to avoid surgery but the decision became unavoidable by the summer.
He had surgery on his right foot and removed a bone spur from his left foot. His rehabilitation process was delayed in December after experiencing fluid in his left knee.
First acquired from the Utah Jazz before the 2022-23 trade deadline, Vanderbilt signed a four-year, $48 million extension with Los Angeles in September of 2023. He was fresh off helping the Lakers reach the Western Conference Finals.
When healthy, Vanderbilt is a terrific, versatile defender who will add toughness and switch-ability to the Lakers squad.
During 29 appearances last season, the 25-year-old averaged 5.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 20 minutes per game.
Lakers Roster Frustration Brewing
After the Lakers were blown out by the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night, both LeBron James and head coach JJ Redick took to the media to express concerns about the roster.
“It just goes back to not having a huge margin for error and I think our group is like, if one guy is gone from the rotation, there’s an exponential effect to that,” Redick said. “When we’re healthy, we’re whole and we’re playing connected and we execute, I think we’re a great basketball team.”
Center Christian Wood has also yet to play in the 2024-25 season.
“That’s how our team is constructed, we don’t have room for error,” James said. “We don’t have a choice. That’s the way our team is constructed. We have to play close to perfect basketball.”
