Getty Jarred Vanderbilt talking with LeBron James during a January 23 game against the LA Clippers.
Down three games to one in their first-round series with the Denver Nuggets, the Los Angeles Lakers are getting much-needed reinforcements with the return of Jarred Vanderbilt.
The five-year forward hasn’t played since February 1, when he suffered a right mid-foot sprain in a win over the Boston Celtics.
ESPN’s Dave McMenamin was first with reports of Vanderbilt being upgraded to available.
Jarred Vanderbilt is available for Game 5, the Lakers announce.
Vanderbilt averaged 5.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.2 steals per game in his 29 games for Los Angeles this season.
If healthy, his impact on the defensive end should prove a difference maker against a high-powered Nuggets offense.
And by all accounts, he is, given how long the Lakers took to put him back on the floor.
Vanderbilt Was ‘Eyeing’ Return for Game 3
After an April 22 video showed Vanderbilt trending toward a return, notably boot-less, reports surfaced of his intentions to return for the 2023 playoffs.
ESPN’s Dave McMenamin was first to report his push for a Game 3 return.
“Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt,” McMenamin tweeted on April 22. “Out since Feb. 1 with a right midfoot sprain, is eyeing a return to the court as early as Game 3 of L.A.’s first round series with the Denver Nuggets, a source familiar with the situation told ESPN on Monday.”
He followed up referencing the video, saying it was Vanderbilt’s most intense of his rehab.
“Vanderbilt,” McMenamin wrote on April 22. “Has been ramping up his on-court workouts in the past two weeks, the source told ESPN, and participated in one of his most intense workouts yet Monday morning at Ball Arena.”
But Game 3 came and went, and Vanderbilt sat sidelined. As was the case with Game 4.
Now returned for Game 5, fans should feel confident that he’s as healthy as he’s going to be for the playoffs.
The team facing elimination certainly factors in, but Game 5 is the second such game.
Vanderbilt is good to go.
Vanderbilt’s Defensive Impact
His stat line is rarely popping off of the box score, but Vanderbilt earns every penny of his four-year, $48-million deal with Los Angeles on the defensive end.
According to Cleaning the Glass, in 1,182 possessions with the forward on the floor this season, the Lakers outscored opponents by 6.4 points per 100 possessions.
They do so, by holding opponents to 111.4 points per 100 possessions, which ranks in the 86th percentile among the entire NBA.
Against a Denver team that had 5 players score in double-digits in both Games 1 and 2, Vanderbilt’s impact (if he’s healthy) could provide a much-needed boost to Los Angeles’ chances.
According to Land of Basketball, teams that take a 3-1 lead go on to win the series 95.4-percent of the time.
That number is even higher for teams in the first round, at 96.3-percent.
The last team to overcome a 3-1 deficit in a seven-game series was the 2019-2020 Denver Nuggets, who fell into a 3-1 hole against the LA Clippers in the first round.
Denver is also the last team to accomplish a 3-1 comeback in the first round of the playoffs, in that same 2020 postseason, when they beat the Utah Jazz.
LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers face an uphill climb in Game 5. Jarred Vanderbilt’s return should help their efforts.