Lakers' Jarred Vanderbilt leaves fans confused with alleged deleted tweet after injury update news - "Too much mystery" 

LA Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt left fans confused after allegedly deleting a cryptic tweet on Tuesday, hours after the team released the latest injury update on him. The Lakers said that Vanderbilt suffered a setback in his progression amid recovery from bilateral foot surgeries, sustaining an effusion in his left knee.

Vanderbilt's latest setback's a blow for the Purple and Gold, who have one of the worst defenses in the NBA amid their 12-9 start. LA is 24th with a 116.7 rating and 21st in opposition points score (114.1). With Vanderbilt in the lineup during the 2022-23 season after the deadline, the Lakers had the third-best defensive rating in the NBA.

However, he's been out of action for a large part of his tenure as a Laker since that season, playing only 29 games. Vanderbilt was initially expected to return in November, but the date is now pushed to January.

Jarred Vanderbilt's prolonged absence continues hurting the team's chances at success. If the unrest among fans wasn't enough, his latest activity on X has further created confusion about his return.

"False," Vanderbilt tweeted.

Several Lakers fan pages captured the tweet before Vanderbilt deleted it.

"Apparently Vando just tweeted out “false” and then deleted it. Is he implying that the injury report is wrong and he’ll come back earlier? Or is he implying the injury report is wrong and will return later?" one X user wrote.

One fan said:

"Too much mystery around Vando. Bro wants to leave the Lakers now is saying False like he’s coming back."

"I love Vando but this is getting too frustrating," another added.

"Nah the way he was taking shots he definitely not coming back for a while," another said.

One fan vented his frustration with the Lakers, saying:

"Don’t know what’s real or fake with this damn team anymore lmaooo"

"He don’t wanna be a laker anymore," another added.

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LA Lakers unable to 'fully evaluate' team amid Jarred Vanderbilt's absence

The LA Lakers have played with the same core for two consecutive seasons. Despite a first-round exit last year, Rob Pelinka and Co. didn't make any moves. Their biggest acquisition this season was via trade after adding Dalton Knecht in the first round.

The Lakers believe this core has the potential to deliver again when healthy, akin to their 2023 conference finals run. However, Jarred Vanderbilt, arguably the key to making it all work solely because of his elite defense, hasn't been available.

Because of that, the Lakers haven't been able to evaluate the team's needs amid an up-and-down start. It's a significant problem, considering they need trades to have any shot at a deep playoff run this year.

The Lakers have glaring weaknesses in the frontcourt, majority of which Jarred Vanderbilt resolves, but they can't rely on his comeback, especially considering his injury history.