The Los Angeles Lakers have been battling a variety of injuries to key players throughout the 2024-25 season. It's been one of the primary sources of optimism at times of discontent, as Los Angeles has long believed that it could be a truly elite team with all of its pieces in place.
As fate would have it, one of the players whom the Lakers were forced to play without has now found himself in the altruistic position to repay a teammate who helped fill the void for him.
Jarred Vanderbilt has appeared in 13 of Los Angeles' 57 games during the 2024-25 regular season. His absence from the rotation was a devastating blow at times, primarily due to his status as the team's primary wing-stopper.
Thankfully, the acquisition of Dorian Finney-Smith and the emergence of Rui Hachimura as a true two-way player helped soften the blow.
Unfortunately, just as Vanderbilt has returned to the lineup, Hachimura has picked up an injury of his own. He suffered a left knee strain during the Lakers' 111-102 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Feb. 27 and could miss time due to the ailment.
If the Lakers are going to overcome Hachimura's potential absence, then Vanderbilt will need to repay the favor and thrive in his teammate's place now that he's the healthy option.
Jarred Vanderbilt must step up with Rui Hachimura injured
It'd be unfair to expect Vanderbilt to average the 17.9 points per game that Hachimura mustered between Jan. 30 and Feb. 25. On that same level, it would've been unreasonable to believe Hachimura could play the level of defense that Vanderbilt has managed throughout his career.
Much as Hachimura needed to find a way to offset Vanderbilt's absence when he was hurt, however, the roles must now reverse for Los Angeles to overcome their latest absence.
Vanderbilt has played somewhat limited minutes since making his 2024-25 regular season debut on Jan. 25. He's exceeded 20 minutes in a single game just once, which is admittedly to be expected considering he missed three full months to start the season.
Los Angeles is 11-2 with Vanderbilt in the lineup, however, which certainly implies that he's found a way to contribute to winning.
With Hachimura out, patience simply won't be the luxury that it's thus far been. Finney-Smith will likely start, and Dalton Knecht could play meaningful minutes if given the chance, but Vanderbilt will be essential to the Lakers maintaining their elite defensive play.
Los Angeles ranks No. 1 in the NBA in defensive rating since Jan. 15 and Vanderbilt's return has played a significant role in that success over the past month.
If Vanderbilt can continue to contribute in the neighborhood of 20 high-level minutes on defense and as a rebounder, Hachimura's absence could be circumvented. If he struggles to ramp up his quality and playing time, however, the Lakers' lack of ideal interior depth could be more easily exposed.
The burden doesn't exclusively fall to Vanderbilt, but he must now step up to help cover for an injury absence in the same way his teammates helped him.