Jarred Vanderbilt appeared in my dream last night.
This is not a joke. I have been waiting so long to see Vanderbilt in action that he has started to appear in my dreams. But this was different than any other dream I have ever had. this was something important, I could feel it. It was something I had to share.
I had an epiphany in the dream. In my dream, Vando returned to action against the San Antonio Spurs on the 13th. This is a real game that the lakers play this season. Although to clarify, I had already known the Lakers schedule pretty reliably for the rest of this month when I had the dream. It was not a random opponent and date that i just pulled out of nowhere that happened to be real. That would be crazy. Maybe that makes the epiphany less meaningful idk.
Regardless, I was at the game and was hype af to watch him finally return. He played limited minutes, around 15-20, where he was decently impactful. He was clearly not at 100%, more like 80 or so, but he was still doing positive things on the defensive end. He also had 2 open buckets; one from a simple back cut and the other in transition after getting a steal playing the passing lanes. He did not shoot any 3’s in game, but in warm ups he had a decent rhythm going from the corner. Who knows whether it ever translates to in-game, but it’s better than nothing.
The best part of all of this game was when a lineup was put out that included Vando, AD, DFS, and Max. I don’t even remember the 5th guy, but it was beautiful to see defensively. JJ knew what he was doing with this lineup. So much switchability and length, with no one being easily exploitable in mismatch situations. It made me damp in my eyes and in my underpants. What made me even damper was seeing AD having substantial help on the defensive glass, which Vando provided even at 80%. We won the game with relative ease, as Wemby had a poor shooting performance from the perimeter, and nobody else on the spurs did anything substantial.
Really though, aside from all of the statistics and analysis i can possibly relay, it just felt so damn good seeing Vando back on this team in a Lakers uniform. The vibes with this team just seemed to get like 20x better by proxy of him being available. The crowd was great the whole game, but the celebration on the steal to layup fast break was something different than any other play in the game. It just felt damn good and the energy was palpable.
I have missed Vando as he has been one of, if not my favorite laker the last couple seasons. The energy he brings into a game is an attribute that is hard to find in this league, and the defensive lineups with him and AD on the court were always so exciting. His defensive rebounding was also such a lifesaver for us at times. Which is why it has hurt so much that he hasn’t played yet, and why it felt so good to see him come back in this game.
The whole dream felt so real. It was unlike any other dream I have experienced in the way I felt its message seeping into my brain. I couldn’t forget it if I tried, which is something that never happens with me and dreams. Maybe I am crazy, but I truly believe that this dream was some higher power sending this message into my brain while I was asleep so I can pass it onto the rest of you. Don’t lose hope with this team or with Vanderbilt. He is coming back very soon. See you all in 6 days.