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Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt suffered a gruesome finger injury during the team’s Game 1 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night.
Vanderbilt went up to block Thunder star Chet Holmgren’s dunk, but missed. Instead, his little finger got stuck in the backboard as he went down. Vanderbilt was in tremendous pain, and even the Thunder bench grimaced at Vanderbilt’s hand.
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Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt leaves the court in pain during the first half of the first game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 5, 2026, in the second round of the 2026 NBA playoffs. (Alonzo Adams/Imagn Images)
“I mean, it just looked pretty awful in my opinion,” Thunder guard Jared McCain said after Oklahoma City won 108-90. “I don’t even know, to be honest, what I was watching. But it looked pretty bad. So pray for him. Send him love.”
Vanderbilt, who averaged 4.4 points per game during the regular season, played just six minutes in the opener. He had two points and a rebound.
Lakers coach JJ Redick spoke about Vanderbilt’s accident after the game, calling it a “freak injury.”
Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt runs on the court during the first half against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on May 5, 2026. (Alonzo Adams/Imagn Images)
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“I went to look at it because it looked bad,” Redick said. “He was screaming audibly. He knew he did something. We’re obviously disappointed. But it happened, and it’s just a freak injury.”
Los Angeles has been hit by the injury bug over the past month. The team lost Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic in the final games of the regular season. Reaves returned to the court for Game 5 against the Houston Rockets.
Against the Thunder, he scored just eight points in 36 minutes.
Doncic is still nursing a hamstring injury, which cost him the last five games of the regular season and now Game 1 against Oklahoma City.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt shoots as Jared McCain and Alex Caruso of the Oklahoma City Thunder defend during the first half in Game 1 of the second round of the NBA playoffs in Oklahoma City on May 5, 2026. (Kyle Phillips/AP)
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Game 2 is scheduled for Thursday evening.
