The Los Angeles Lakers' inability to trade Jarred Vanderbilt and his remaining contract has been identified as one of the team's biggest offseason failures.
The Los Angeles Lakers have completed a major offseason roster overhaul ahead of the new season.
Keeping Austin Reaves and adding a major center in Walker Kessler were among the team's biggest priorities this summer. However, outside of those moves, the Lakers had limited flexibility to pursue another star — and one contract appears to have played a major role in that.
Jarred Vanderbilt still has roughly $25.7 million remaining on his deal over the next two seasons, and his contract has seemingly become one of the Lakers' biggest obstacles on the trade market.
According to Svyatoslav Rovenchuk of Lake Show Life, Los Angeles made multiple attempts to move Vanderbilt this summer.
His name reportedly came up in trade discussions involving Walker Kessler as well as a potential deal for Jonathan Kuminga, but neither team was willing to take on Vanderbilt's contract.
Rovenchuk believes the Lakers' inability to move Vanderbilt is disappointing, although understandable given how little leverage they had in those negotiations.
"The failure to move on from Vanderbilt will be a touch disappointing for Lakers fans," he wrote. "Given the nuanced lack of leverage in both scenarios where Los Angeles might have done it, it is a justifiable failure."
Vanderbilt enters another season with Lakers
Vanderbilt is currently playing under a four-year, $48 million contract extension that runs through the 2027-28 season.
He is set to earn $12.4 million during the upcoming 2026-27 campaign.
Last season, Vanderbilt appeared in 65 games and averaged 4.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 17.4 minutes per game.
Despite his limited offensive production, Vanderbilt has continued to establish his value in Los Angeles as a defense-first forward who can fit alongside Luka Doncic.
Still, with his contract seemingly limiting the Lakers' flexibility, it remains to be seen whether the team will explore additional trade opportunities involving Vanderbilt later in the season.
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