Jarred Vanderbilt was removed from the Los Angeles Lakers rotation after struggling to start the season. Head coach JJ Redick made the decision because his offensive deficiencies outweighed the defensive energy he brought to the floor. But when the Lakers were struggling to get stops with the role players they had surrounding Luka Doncic and LeBron James, Redick brought Vanderbilt back into the mix.
Not only was his infusion of energy immediately noticed, but he also had some stunning improvements on offense. In the eight games since returning to the rotation, Vanderbilt is shooting 11-of-21 from 3-point range and has hit at least one triple in all eight games. Vanderbilt shot 4-of-15 from 3 in his first 15 games this season.
After hitting another one on Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies and giving 20 strong minutes in the win, James discussed why Vanderbilt is so essential to the Lakers.
“Obviously, we need his athleticism,” LeBron said. “We need the way he can guard multiple positions. It’s very key that he’s back in the lineup and we love that. But we also need him to knock down a corner shot occasionally, when teams are not gonna guard him. They kind of disrespect him over there not even contesting his shots. He’s put a lot of work in everyday at practice just shooting that same shot. Luka [Dončić] attracts so much attention. They’re either putting a five on him or a roaming four. But he’s not hesitating, he’s just shooting it. No matter if he missed one or missed two in a row, he’s just shooting the next one. Like you said, that was a big time three.”
Dincic, meanwhile, praised Vanderbilt’s effort to improve his shooting and being willing to let it fly with confidence despite his history of struggles from that range.
“Yeah, he worked on his shot a lot,” Doncic said. “I saw some things this summer and he was showing that he was working on it. That’s going to get the confidence up. If they are going to let him shoot, we’ll always pass him the ball when he’s open. Obviously, even when he hits those shots, there’s so many other things he does for us that helps us win.”
He then echoed LeBron’s sentiment of what Vanderbilt provides for L.A.
“That’s exactly what we need from him. Keep doing what he’s doing. We’re all supportive. He’s a lot of times key to winning games,” Doncic added.
If the Lakers are going to reach a quality ceiling this season, Vanderbilt is going to be a part of the mix, barring a major trade. His athleticism and defense are simply too vital on a team that has a short supply of players like him. And if his 3-pointer is falling at this rate, he becomes even more important.
Lakers’ Jake LaRavia trusting jump shot
Lakers forward Jake LaRavia had been in a long-term slump shooting the ball, coinciding with the Lakers’ recent losing stretch. He was shooting just 30.9% from 3 this season and 22.6% in his last 10 games prior to Friday night.
He had a huge performance in the win against his former team, however, scoring 21 points on 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Following the 128-121 victory, LaRavia admitted it felt good to finally see his outside shots fall even though he has remained confident.
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