What s going on? Is it a foregone conclusion that Vanderbilt will be traded to the Lakers?

In the game against the Pelicans, Vanderbilt scored 3 points and 2 rebounds on 1 of 4 shots in 11 minutes. He only scored 1 rebound in 8 minutes against the Bucks. He was directly DNP against the Jazz.

Judging from the data alone, the Lakers' recent three consecutive victories have little or even no relationship with "Fan Der Biao". Large sample data, so far in the 25-26 season, when Vanderbilt is on the court, the Lakers have a net loss of 4.1 points per 100 possessions, and when he is not on the court, the team has a net loss of 3.9 points per 100 possessions.

In fact, in my opinion, it is a foregone conclusion that Vanderbilt will be traded by the Lakers.

Reason 1: Function. As mentioned just now, the Lakers lose when "Van Der Biao" is on the court and win when he is not there. This scene is very reminiscent of Westbrook during the Lakers period.

Reason 2: Team needs. When Ayton continues to be efficient, Reeves evolves, and Doncic is in hot form, it seems to a certain extent that the Lakers still have the possibility to win the championship this season. The premise is that there must be a defender like Caruso and McDaniels who can lead defenders and forwards.

Relatively speaking, I think the first point is the main reason.

Explanation point: irreplaceability. So far in the 25-26 season, Vanderbilt's offensive real plus-minus is -3.3 and its defensive real plus-minus is 1.2. It is worth mentioning that both values ​​are new lows since joining the Lakers. From the data point of view, "Fan Debiao" is a typical "offensive is weak and defense is strong".

Let’s not talk about the offense first, let’s talk about the defensive end, which is a strong point.

Since joining the Lakers, Smart's defensive real plus-minus is 0.9 - there is a gap compared to Vanderbilt's 1.2, but the difference is not big. More importantly, in addition to the three-point rate, Smart is far better than Vanderbilt in terms of 75% at the basket and 44.4% in the mid-range.

In other words, the former will not be empty by the opponent and become an "offensive black hole" like the latter.

While the irreplaceability of the defensive end has dropped significantly, the performance of the offensive end can even be described as "eye-catching".

In terms of statistics, 14 of the 50 shots taken so far this season have come from outside the three-point line. It is worth mentioning that these 14 shots were all taken in quasi-open spaces with the defender more than 4 feet away, but the shooting rate was only 28.6%.

As for the basket, when Ayton shot nearly 80% with the support of Doncic and Reeves, Vanderbilt's shooting rate was only less than 60%. To put it bluntly, he couldn't grasp the open space on the outside, and he "vomited cake" at the basket that was close at hand.

In addition to the significant decline in its irreplaceability, the aspect of salary cannot be ignored.

First of all, although Knecter also has a nearly three-year contract, it is a rookie contract. Secondly, although Kleber's help to the team is limited, his contract is expiring. Potentially, being before the trade deadline is still attractive to teams that are determined to be bad.

Looking at it this way, Vanderbilt still has a three-year contract worth 36 million and is not very helpful to the team. He is a very "eyesore".

Speaking of which, if Pelinka can trade Vanderbilt + the Pelicans for Herbert Jones in the first round, it will definitely be a stroke of genius - on the one hand, he will get rid of the former, and more importantly, on the other hand, he will make up for the weakest link in the team. Potentially, the Lakers really have a chance to win the championship.