Jarred Vanderbilt was downgraded with an injury against the Grizzlies

Injury hits for Los Angeles Lakers seemingly continues as Jared Vanderbilt was the latest player to appear on the team’s injury report ahead of the upcoming game against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Jared Vanderbilt was officially listed as suspicious on the Lakers’ injury report for Friday’s game against the Grizzlies. Vanderbilt was listed as having right leg pain. The Lakers are already without Austin Reaves (calf), Rui Hachimura (calf) and Gabe Vincent (back), and rookie Adou Thiero recently suffered a sprained MCL that will sideline him for at least four weeks.

The Lakers had to change their lineup because of all the injuries they suffered, which made it a little difficult to build chemistry and cohesion on the court. LeBron James missed the first 14 games of the season due to a nerve injury, and Luka Doncic missed time due to various ailments.

Amidst the Lakers’ recent strugglesstretch where they’ve lost four of their last five games, Vanderbilt brings a lot of what head coach JJ Reddick has been looking for, namely energy, effort and defense. When James returned to the lineup, Vanderbilt was pushed out of the rotation.

But with the Lakers’ defensive struggles, Redick had no choice but to bring him back into the rotation. Since Vanderbilt played, improved its 3-point shooting in addition to bringing his usual intensity to the defensive end. Over the past seven games, Vanderbilt has shot 10-of-18 (55.5 percent) from the 3-point line.

After the Lakers lost on Christmas Day to the Houston Rockets, Vanderbilt talked about the need for everyone on the roster to make a decision to put forth energy and effort.

“It’s more a matter of will. I think anybody is physically capable of breaking the glass, jumping on the floor, it’s just a matter of effort and wanting to do it. I think that’s what separates a person from getting the ball and not getting the ball,” Vanderbilt said. “Just thinking that, ‘I’m going to fight for this ball and I’m going to get it … I’m going to break the glass, I’m going to sprint all the way back and take care.’ That’s a decision you have to make throughout the game.”

This season, Vanderbilt has appeared in 22 games, including two starts, logging just over 19 minutes per game. He averaged 5.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 46.4 percent from the field and 42.4 percent from the 3-point line.