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Jarred Vanderbilt Out for Lakers vs. Jayson Tatum and the Celtics Due to Foot Injuries
Due to right foot soreness, Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt will not play against the Boston Celtics on Thursday night. Before leaving the court with 46 seconds remaining in the second quarter, Vanderbilt had 10 points and was 2-for-3 from beyond the arc. This injury further thins the Lakers’ roster, as Anthony Davis and LeBron James, the team’s starters, were already sidelined before the game. In Vanderbilt’s absence, Rui Hachimura is likely to play more minutes. Hachimura began the third quarter in Vanderbilt’s place, recording seven rebounds and three steals in 16 minutes of what was looking to be one of his best performances of the season.
The broadcast appeared to show Vanderbilt pivoting to guard Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, then wincing and hopping to avoid putting weight on his right foot.
After being examined courtside, Vanderbilt could then be seen limping as he headed to the locker room.
The game had marked just his fifth start of the season, as Vanderbilt was called up in the absence of James (left ankle peroneal tendinopathy) and Davis (bilateral Achilles tendinopathy and a left hip spasm) in the first game the two had missed simultaneously this season.
Vanderbilt has yet to be a regular in the 2023-24 Lakers starting rotation after missing the first 20 games of the season with an injury that the team initially classified as foot soreness before later defining as left heel bursitis.
The Lakers forward has played in 28 of 29 games since returning on Dec. 2, missing only one due to back spasms. He was averaging 10.6 points and 5.1 rebounds per game over his last seven appearances heading into Thursday’s matchup.
