Jarred Vanderbilt Will Earn Minutes for Denver Nuggets

DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 24: Jarred Vanderbilt #8 of the Denver Nuggets poses for a portrait during the Denver Nuggets Media Day at the Pepsi Center on September 24, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 24: Jarred Vanderbilt #8 of the Denver Nuggets poses for a portrait during the Denver Nuggets Media Day at the Pepsi Center on September 24, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) /
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Former Kentucky Wildcat forward Jarred Vanderbilt is a raw and uber-athletic forward who will get minutes for the Nuggets this season

Former Kentucky wildcat Jarred Vanderbilt was drafted in the second round of 2018’s NBA Draft. Coming off a season where Vanderbilt watched most of his freshman season at Kentucky from the bench due to a mysterious injury, his position in the NBA was up in the air. The 6-9 forward, though he played very few games, was a squealing pig on the basketball court in college. A raw, chaotic bundle of pure energy. Jarred rebounded like Dennis Rodman, ran the court like Pascal Siakam, and passed the ball like a senior point guard. But he couldn’t shoot and lacked true feel for the game; one of the stranger players to suit up during the Calipari era. Luckily, the Denver Nuggets took a flier on him in the second round.

After a season spent mostly on the plush cushions of the Denver bench, Vanderbilt was unleashed during the 2019 summer league; and he proved exactly why he will earn minutes this coming year and deep into the future.

Throwing Vanderbilt into a basketball game–especially in a laid back setting like Summer League–is like throwing Nicolas Cage into a 90s movie. You’re taking a human-shaped lightning bolt and tossing it out there with mortal human beings. That’s the energy Vanderbilt brings to the table; uncontrollable and freakish. Defensively, he’s swarming like a bee around a pot of flowers during spring, zipping every which way and refusing to settle.

Jarred Vanderbilt
LEXINGTON, KY – FEBRUARY 24: Jarred Vanderbilt #2 of the Kentucky Wildcats shoots the ball against the Missouri Tigers at Rupp Arena on February 24, 2018 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

That frenetic energy translates to the glass, where Vanderbilt is as strong a rebounder as you’ll find. It’s the first thing that jumped off the screen when he was at Kentucky. The man just swallows rebounds. As a quick, smart, and bouncy 6’9 forward, Vanderbilt is a flawless positioner on the rebounding front. The ball just bounces to him, and it isn’t luck. I don’t know what else to say, Jarred (with two R’s) is a basketball genius when it comes to rebounding the ball. Maybe Bill Walton mentored him.

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Next, there’s the defense. When a human being is 6-foot-9 and can outsprint half of the guards in the NBA, that man is going to be a good defender. It’s simple basketball theory. I cracked the code. Be tall and fast and jump high. Defense will come easily. In all seriousness, he can lock dudes down, dare I say, at all five positions? Vanderbilt turned 20 a few months ago and already possesses elite defensive qualities and mouth-watering measurables. There might be an All-Defense appearance lined up for this young man in the future.

Denver nuggets
DENVER, CO – SEPTEMBER 24: Jarred Vanderbilt #8 of the Denver Nuggets poses for a portrait during the Denver Nuggets Media Day at the Pepsi Center on September 24, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) /

Now, of course, you’re wondering (if you are a Nuggets fan) about Vanderbilt’s offense? Great, we have a rebounder who can defend; but can he score the ball, like, at all? Well, not really; not at this stage in his development. But there’s time to mature as a scorer. Jarred’s hasn’t even drank alcohol yet, so cut him some slack. However, his contributions on offense come in a variety of ways. 1.) He rebounds ferociously on offense, enabling easy second-chance buckets for himself or his teammates. 2.) Vanderbilt is an effective screener with above-average agility and athleticism for a big man, which makes him a lethal target on the roll. 3.) Jarred Vanderbilt can pass. Not in the sense that he’s able. In the sense that he ran point guard for a few minutes in his first game as a Wildcat.  Jarred throws bullets. You’ll end up like Ned Stark if Jarred whips one at you and you aren’t paying attention. He is a hyper passer who delivers on-target darts. It’s an awesome skill to have as a 6-9 forward, just ask Ben Simmons. And unlike Simmons, he made a three-pointer once.

Vanderbilt will be a rotation caliber forward for the next decade. I think there’s an outside chance he booms into something resembling a Ben Simmons with a good attitude and more effort. Passing, IQ, relentlessness, quickness, rebounding, elite defense, Vanderbilt holds a unique mixtape of skills that could be molded into stardom. I love Mike Malone and the Denver Nuggets staff, they’ll discover the best version of Jarred Vanderbilt, I’m sure of it.

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