Will Lakers’ Jarred Vanderbilt, Christian Wood return for Game 3?
DENVER — Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt “exerted himself at a pretty high level” during a workout after the team’s Monday shootaround but remains day-to-day, Coach Darvin Ham said ahead of Game 2 of the Lakers’ first-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets.
Vanderbilt has been sidelined since early February because of a sprained right midfoot injury he suffered in the Lakers’ Feb. 1 road win against the Boston Celtics.
He’s played just 29 games this season after missing the first seven weeks because of a left heel injury.
“We’ll see how he responds to what he did [Monday],” Ham said. “And still, nothing’s gonna change in terms of new information. It’s just a day-by-day thing.
“And so we have to see how he tolerates the recovery process. He exerted himself at a pretty high level. So we’ll see how he feels [Wednesday]. We’ll just keep going day by day.”
Jarred Vanderbilt getting up shots after shootaround: https://t.co/p1CVhYftOj pic.twitter.com/rfzuIX2WnV
— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) April 22, 2024
Although Ham said Vanderbilt remains day-to-day, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, citing unnamed sources, reported Monday night that Vanderbilt is eyeing a return as early as Thursday’s Game 3 in Los Angeles.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that big man Christian Wood also plans to return to the lineup for Game 3.
Wood didn’t travel with the team to Denver.
He had left knee surgery last month and hasn’t played since the All-Star break, being sidelined for what the team officially deemed “left knee effusion” (swelling) for a month before the procedure.
Wood averaged 6.9 points and 5.1 rebounds in 17.4 minutes per game (50 games) during the regular season after signing a two-year, $5.75 million contract with the Lakers as a free agent in September.
“He’s still going through his recovery process from injuries, rehab process,” Ham said Sunday. “Obviously, he has size, he has length, he has rebounding capabilities, he can stretch the floor. But first and foremost, he has a couple more boxes to check before we even consider [him returning].”
DRAFT PICK
Six ties among teams with identical regular-season records were broken through random drawings to determine the order of selection for June’s NBA draft.
As part of the results of those drawings, the Lakers will have the 17th pick in the draft after coming in second place in a four-way tie with the Philadelphia 76ers, Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers.
All four aforementioned teams finished the regular season with 47-35 records.
The 76ers will have the 16th pick, the Magic will have the 18th pick and the Pacers will have the 19th pick.
RUSSELL’S START
D’Angelo Russell’s six first-half 3-pointers were the most he has made in any postseason half in his career, per the Lakers. Russell shot 6 for 7 from behind the arc for 18 points before halftime.
Anthony Davis had 24 points on 11-for-12 shooting at halftime, with his 11 field goals being the most he has ever made in a playoff half in his career.