Expert explains the latest update on Jarred Vanderbilt’s midfoot sprain

Let’s take a closer look at Jarred Vanderbilt’s recovery from the foot injury that kept him out since February and whether he’ll be available for the preseason and training camp.

Los Angeles Lakers wing Jarred Vanderbilt suffered what was described as a midfoot sprain last season against the Boston Celtics. In the moment, it was initially feared that Vanderbilt would be ruled out for the season due to surgery. That did not happen, though, as the Lakers opted for the non-surgery route hoping he would return at some point for the playoffs.

Although Vando was certainly progressing with rehab, he was never able to make it back to the court, part of that due to the Lakers being eliminated relatively early.

There hasn’t been much news on his progress following the end of the season until last week. A report from Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet indicated that Vanderbilt may not be fully ready for training camp or to play in pre-season as he continued with his rehab.

Let's take a closer look at what could be causing that extended rehab process and how risk/reward calculations are completely flipped based on context.

Of course, the Lakers will want Vanderbilt to return as quickly as possible, particularly since he adds a unique element to the team. He has shown it takes him some time to get up to full speed and confidence — he was just getting there when he got injured in Boston — but that has to be balanced against the type of injury he had and where we sit in the season.

For now, the key is continuing with a methodical rehab process to make sure he can handle playing in games while not increasing reinjury risk. As always, I will keep you updated as we learn more.

Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT has a doctorate in physical therapy from Northern Arizona University, and runs his own in-person and online sports medicine and performance business, 3CB Performance, in West LA and Valencia, CA and partners with Quantum Performance in which he further combines his movement expertise and fitness training background to rehab & train elite athletes.

He also works at a hospital — giving him experience with patients in the immediate healthcare setting and neurological patients (post stroke, post brain injury) — and has been practicing for over 5 years. Brar is additionally training at UCLA’s mindful awareness research center (MARC), has a background in youth basketball coaching and analyzes the Lakers from a medical and skills perspective for Silver Screen and Roll and on his own YouTube Channel. You can follow him on Twitter at @3cbPerformance.