The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Dallas Mavericks on February 26 by erasing a 27-point deficit on the road to improve to 29-32 on the season. All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis combined for 56 points in the win, but it was Jarred Vanderbilt who was the unsung hero.
Vanderbilt finished with 15 points, 17 rebounds and four steals while shooting 6-of-8 from the field. He single-handedly turned the game around late in the second quarter with his defense and energy and James and Davis are thrilled the 23-year-old Texas native is on the Lakers.
“Very valuable,” Davis said during his postgame interview while describing Vanderbilt’s impact. “Being down 27, 14 at half and he comes out and set the tone for us defensively on Luka (Doncic). Getting some steals. Making him shoot some tough shots. His rebounding on both ends of the floor. He just started an effect for our group to lock in defensively. On the other end, he knows guys like to play off of him and make him shoot and he knows how to play off it with his corner cutting and crashing into the glass, getting us extra possessions. His value for our team, you can’t even put it into words what he brings and does for us. Having a player like that definitely helps us.”
Added James: “I think some guys in our league when you’re not great at something, teams are able to use that to their advantage defensively and either sag off of you or play off of you. Sometimes, you’re playing offense 5 on 4, whatever the case may be. His basketball IQ and his intelligence of being guarded this way for so long has actually used it to his advantage. Teams turn their head because they’re not paying attention to him because they don’t think he’s a threat, goes backdoor for a layup as you saw in the fourth quarter on the reverse. Teams are not accounting for him when shots go up, so you saw the eight offensive rebounds that he had.”
Vanderbilt had a plus-minus of +14 against the Mavericks. The Kentucky product is averaging 8.6 points and 8.8 rebounds in five games with the Lakers.
LeBron James on Jarred Vanderbilt: ‘He Knows Where to Be on Every Single Possession’
James is a big fan of Vanderbilt. The four-time MVP and four-time Finals MVP said after the Mavericks game that Vanderbilt “knows where to be on every single possession.”
“His energy, his effort alone, he knows where to be on every single possession,” James said. “And he knows how to utilize teams not accounting for him as an offensive threat. That is basketball IQ in its own right and that’s what makes him the player he is.”
The Lakers have won three games in a row. They are in 12th place in the Western Conference standings and one game back of the New Orleans Pelicans for the 10th spot. The top six seeds in the conference automatically qualify for the playoffs, while teams 7-10 make the play-in tournament.
Jarred Vanderbilt Played Great Defense on Luka Doncic
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, Vanderbilt played great defense on Doncic, who is one of the top players in the NBA. The Mavericks superstar is averaging 33.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and 8.1 assists on the season.
“With Vanderbilt as the primary defender, Doncic shot 0 of 3, dished one assist and turned the ball over five times (Vanderbilt either forced the turnover or intercepted a pass). Vanderbilt used his 7-foot-1 wingspan to stay big against Doncic and disrupt his step-back and his vision on drives,” Buha wrote. “Vanderbilt’s five deflections led the Lakers and almost matched the Mavericks’ team total (seven), per NBA.com.”
Doncic put up 26 points, nine rebounds and five assists against the Lakers. However, he had six turnovers as well.
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Lakers’ LeBron James & Anthony Davis Issue Strong Statements on Jarred Vanderbilt