(Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images)
The Los Angeles Lakers were coming off two consecutive blowouts against the Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks before taking on the arch-rival Boston Celtics on Thursday night, which many thought would be another devastating loss, especially with LeBron James and Anthony Davis not playing.
However, in a surprising twist, the Lakers were able to come out on top in convincing fashion against arguably the best team in the league without their two superstars, which was a win the team sorely needed on their long road trip.
Unfortunately, the win over the Celtics seems to have cost them one of their best defenders, with forward Jarred Vanderbilt suffering a foot injury in the game.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Vanderbilt, who has already missed considerable time this season, is expected to miss several weeks with this right foot injury.
ESPN Sources with @McTen: Lakers F Jarred Vanderbilt is expected to miss several weeks with a right foot injury. Further evaluation is expected to see if it’s an injury that might even keep him out even longer. pic.twitter.com/26I1iQNF50
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 2, 2024
This is an unfortunate turn of events for the Lakers, with Vanderbilt starting to get back to form as one of the league’s best perimeter defenders, as he’s played some inspired basketball as of late, even though the team has struggled.
With Vanderbilt on the mend and no telling whether he’ll be back on the floor for the Lakers this season, it’ll be interesting to see how this alters the team’s plans ahead of the NBA trade deadline on February 8.
As usual, the Lakers have been mentioned in several trade rumors leading up to the deadline, as it seems as though the storied franchise is intent on making a move in hopes of turning their season around.
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