Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt sustained a severe right pinkie injury during Tuesday night's Western Conference semifinal Game 1 against the Oklahoma City Thunder, an incident that visibly disturbed players on the opposing bench.
The injury occurred when Vanderbilt attempted to block a dunk by Thunder center Chet Holmgren. His finger struck the backboard, causing an immediate, painful reaction.
Thunder guard Jared McCain described the scene, stating, "I mean, it just — it looked pretty gruesome in my opinion. I don’t even know, to be honest, what I was looking at. It looked pretty bad, though. So, prayers for him. Sending him love."
Vanderbilt was seen bending over in pain before exiting the game.
Lakers coach JJ Redick confirmed the severity, adding, "I went to go check on him because it just looked bad. He was audibly screaming. Knew he had done something. We’re obviously disappointed. But that happened, and it’s just a freak injury."
The former Jazz player suffered a full dislocation of his right pinkie finger, reports ESPN. The injury required stitches as the bone broke through the skin. During the live coverage of the game, NBC’s announcers called the injury “gruesome.”
It’s not known how much game time Vanderbilt will miss; the Houston native is a left-handed shooter. The Lakers are already without star Luka Doncic, who is battling a hamstring strain.
The loss of Vanderbilt, who had played six minutes and scored two points, reduced the Lakers' nine-man rotation to eight. At the time of the injury, Holmgren's dunk had put the Thunder up 48-39 in the second quarter.
Oklahoma City went on to win the game 108-90, leading 61-53 at halftime.
