The Los Angeles Lakers signed forward Jarred Vanderbilt to a contract extension, it was announced today by Vice President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Rob Pelinka.
After joining Los Angeles via trade from the Utah Jazz on Feb. 9, Vanderbilt (6’9”, 214) appeared in 26 games (24 starts) and averaged 7.2 points (52.9 FG%), 6.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals in 24.1 minutes per contest to end the 2022-23 regular season. Overall, Vanderbilt suited up in 78 games (65 starts) with the Lakers and Jazz last season, averaging 7.9 points (54.8 FG%), 7.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 24.1 minutes per game. During the 2023 NBA Playoffs with the purple and gold, the 24-year-old saw action in 15 games (13 starts) and averaged 4.6 points and 3.2 rebounds in 16.4 minutes per contest.
Across five professional NBA seasons, Vanderbilt has appeared in 244 career games (162 starts) suiting up for Los Angeles (2022-23), Utah (2022-23), Minnesota (2019-22) and Denver (2018-20). The Texas native owns career averages of 6.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals in 20.6 minutes per game, shooting 57.3 percent overall from the field. In postseason action, Vanderbilt has appeared in 24 career games (19 starts) for the Lakers (2022-23), Timberwolves (2021-22) and Nuggets (2018-19), posting averages of 4.3 points and 3.8 rebounds in 15.9 minutes per game.
Vanderbilt was selected by the Orlando Magic with the 41st overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft after one collegiate season (2017-18) at the University of Kentucky. In his lone campaign with the Wildcats, Vanderbilt averaged 5.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 17.0 minutes per contest.
