NBA coaches look for balance between winning, development

Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt missed the first month of last season due to a heel injury. After playing in 29 games, Vanderbilt then sprained his right foot on February 1 and missed the rest of the season. That foot sprain is reportedly still giving the Lakers forward trouble as training camp approaches.

Vanderbilt may miss the start of training camp according to Spectrum Sportsnet’s Mike Bresnahan. Speaking on the Lakeshow Podcast, Bresnahan gave a less than optimistic update on Vanderbilt’s status.

“Vando is gonna be interesting. I’m not sure he’ll be ready for training camp or even for the preseason games. It’s a foot injury. He opted not to have a procedure in-season when he got hurt in February. So, we’ll see if he’s ready to go. I don’t have a lot of details on it but I’m not sure he’ll be ready for training camp. Regular season is a different story, hopefully he’s ready by then. But nothing concrete on him yet.”

The Lakers signed Vanderbilt to a four-year, $48 million extension that starts with this season. Los Angeles is counting on Vanderbilt to fill a rotation role, as he’s their best defensive forward, with Anthony Davis play primarily at the five.