The news of Jarred Vanderbilt’s injury came as a huge blow to the Lakers on Thursday. Now, who could the team look to to take his place?
The Lakers may have suffered their biggest setback to date on Thursday in a season where numerous breaks haven’t gone their way. The purple and gold are in a risky situation after it was revealed that Jarred Vanderbilt may miss several weeks or possibly the entire season due to an injury.
Less than a week remains until the trade deadline, which helps and hurts the situation. While it provides the Lakers with alternatives to replace Vando’s output, teams are also aware of the urgency with which they will have to operate.
Vando can be replaced in a variety of ways, but who should they consider? The Lakers can consider these five options to replace their
Although few of these names will be new, this one isn’t, so I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Lakers put more emphasis on it. While there will never be a perfect substitute for Vando’s abilities, Brown can cover some of those gaps with his many valuable skills.
He is a competent defender who can fill the void on that side of the ball defensively. Even though he only shoots 33.9% from beyond the arc, offensively he’s a bit more conventional as a 3-and-D wing; however, he provides enough support in other areas as well, shooting 47.8% from the field and 54.5% on 2-pointers this season.
Additionally, he finishes very well; among wings, he is in the 73rd percentile.
The team has already begun pursuing two additional names, but they may develop into more significant targets. Finney-Smith and O’Neale are both typical 3-and-D wings, with Finney-Smith shooting 38.3% and O’Neale 36.1% from range.
Finney-Smith has some encouraging numbers when it comes to his corner 3-point shooting, which has been a problem for the Lakers this season. He is shooting 43% on those attempts, which puts him in the 71st percentile, and ranks in the 94th percentile for frequency. In contrast, Taurean Prince and Vando rank first and second on the Lakers, respectively, in terms of how frequently they make corner 3-pointers, and they both shoot 35%.
Given their stature, both are strong rebounders, which is another way they might be able to fill a different gap left by Vando.
Not every applicant to take Vando’s place has to be a member of an opposing squad. Hachimura hasn’t had the season that was probably anticipated following his impressive postseason for a number of reasons, some of which are under his control and some of which are not.
However, there isn’t really a player on the team who is more qualified to fill in for Vando right now. Hachimura has had a successful run at finding his rhythm lately, as evidenced by his two impressive outings, which included his ten points in the fourth quarter against the Celtics.
Although Hachimura and Vando are not the same player, Hachimura replaced Vando in the starting lineup for the team’s most important postseason matchup last year. He gives the team greater offensive options, though it will take some time.
Though this last one is a little strange, who doesn’t enjoy conjuring up possible scenarios? With his massive contract coming to an end, Hayward is a great buyout candidate and his contract with the Hornets is about to expire. A trade seems unlikely.
On the other hand, the Lakers need a wing and have an open spot on their roster. Given Hayward’s history of injuries (he has missed 21 of the Hornets’ 46 games this season alone), it would be a risky move, but if he can stay healthy, it would be a significant victory for the Lakers.
I don’t think this is in any way the Lakers’ Plan A given his injury concerns. Furthermore, he is by no means a direct replacement for Vando, even if it succeeds, butLeBron James implies that his future with the Lakers is uncertain.
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Jarred Vanderbilt may need a “season-ending” procedure and is anticipated to miss “several weeks.”
Jarred Vanderbilt is regarded by Darvin Ham as “one of the best Swiss army knives in the NBA.”
Lakers allegedly spoke with the Grizzlies regarding a possible Marcus Smart trade.
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