Jarred Vanderbilt injury update; Doing well but won’t play for USA U19 team

After watching Jarred Vanderbilt go down in the Jordan Brand Classic, it looked like the UK signee had suffered a major injury that could sideline him indefinitely.

However, Vanderbilt’s father, Robert Vanderbilt, told Larry Vaught that the Jarred is doing fine as he reports to UK soon.

“Everything is going well,” said Robert. “He’s feeling good, looking good. He just can’t wait until he gets his opportunity at Kentucky.”

The injury came near the end of the Jordan Brand game as Vanderbilt was driving to the rim, but appeared to plant his foot awkwardly and went down writhing in pain. He stayed on the ground favoring his right ankle for several minutes before trainers assisted him off the court as he put no weight on that leg.

As bad as the injury looked, Robert thinks his son will be fine when he arrives in Lexington next week for the second summer session.

“He was told to rest and that’s what he has been doing the last few weeks. The doctor said it all looks well and he will be fine when he gets to Kentucky,” said Robert. “Most certainly the rest will be good for him. He had been going pretty strong.”

However, Vanderbilt won’t be playing with John Calipari as he coaches the Team USA U19 team this summer. Robert said they were not even sure Team USA would go after the recent bombing in Manchester, and the family doesn’t think it’s safe enough for Jarred to make the trip.

“I told Coach Cal when he was here that I would wish him well, but too much is going on in the world. I do not want to go outside the country right now. The timing is just not right,” Robert said.

The 6-9, 213-pound Vanderbilt was one of the biggest risers on the high school all-star circuit, so much that he cracked the top 10 of the final 247 recruiting rankings for 2017. Vanderbilt looked tremendous in the practices and games, enough that he looked like a starter next season at UK.

But Vanderbilt has dealt with injuries throughout his high school career, including a broken foot that sidelined him for much of 2016. The good thing is Vanderbilt will have about five more months until the start of his first college season to rest and recover.

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