Key Player Ruled Out For Suns-Lakers Game
On Thursday evening, the Los Angeles Lakers will host the Phoenix Suns in California for their second game of the regular season.
The Lakers are coming off a 119-107 loss on Tuesday against the Denver Nuggets (in Colorado).
For Thursday's matchup, the Lakers will remain without one of their best players, as Jarred Vanderbilt has been ruled out (he also missed the first game of the season).
Via Underdog NBA: "Jarred Vanderbilt (heel) ruled out for Thursday."
Vanderbilt is coming off a solid year where he averaged 7.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals per contest while shooting 54.8% from the field.
He was initially the 41st pick in the 2018 NBA Draft out of Kentucky, and is in his sixth season in the league (he has played for the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers).
His career averages are 6.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals per contest while shooting 57.3% from the field in 244 regular season games (he has also appeared in 24 NBA playoff games).
The Lakers are coming off a year where they were the seventh seed in the Western Conference with a 43-39 record.
They beat the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors in the first two rounds of the NBA playoffs, but were swept by the Denver Nuggets in the Conference Finals.
The franchise has made the NBA playoffs in three out of the previous four seasons, and won the 2020 NBA Championship over the Miami Heat.
