Jarred Vanderbilt had a tough start to his NBA career, playing sparingly for teams like the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz before carving out an important role with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Although Vanderbilt is limited as a scorer, he makes up for it with pure hustle and effort on both ends of the floor. Vanderbilt is the ideal role player on a team with Luka Doncic and LeBron James because he can be effective without the basketball in his hands.
Vanderbilt’s competitiveness and play style can be endearing to teammates but an irritation to his opponents. For example, Anthony Edwards and Vanderbilt always seem to go at it on the floor though but the two are familiar with each other having previously been teammates.
Edwards recently shouted out Vanderbilt as the teammate he misses most and the latter reciprocated the love.
“That’s my dog,” Vanderbilt said of Edwards. “We played together a couple of years, so me and him got a tight bond even to this day. I know we compete and battle, that’s what we do we’re both high-level competitors. But at the end of the day, it’s all love between me and him. It’s just being able to have that impact on and off the court. Whatever teammate that I have that’s my dog. Lead by example on the court and being a good teammate off, too.”
Edwards and Vanderbilt are both fiery personalities on the court, so there’s certainly a level of mutual respect they have for each other. Whenever the Lakers and Timberwolves play, Vanderbilt is typically assigned to Edwards and it makes for one of the most interesting matchups on the floor.
Minnesota may not going up against Vanderbilt because of how much of a pest he can be, but Los Angeles definitely appreciates what he brings to the table. This season, Vanderbilt will be relied on more than ever to defend the best perimeter players given the Lakers’ roster but so far he seems well-equipped to handle the job.
Gabe Vincent admitted he feels more comfortable whenever Vanderbilt is on the floor, so it’s clear that his teammates and the organization are relying on him.
JJ Redick discusses possibility of Jarred Vanderbilt starting
Head coach JJ Redick has more depth in the front court to work with this season, but as for his starting lineup he has yet to commit to one. When Jarred Vanderbilt came up as a potential starter, Redick didn’t rule it out.
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