EL SEGUNDO — After being sidelined for nearly a year, Jarred Vanderbilt’s return to the court has gone from “imminent” to fast approaching. The Lakers forward is expected to be available for Saturday’s road game against the Golden State Warriors, which kicks off the team’s annual Grammy trip. “It feels good,” Vanderbilt said after Wednesday’s practice. “I mean, it’s been a long journey, [a] tough process, but I’m excited just to be in the position I’m in right now.” Coach JJ Redick said there weren’t any guarantees that Vanderbilt would play on Saturday, but he said the 6-foot-8 forward would be available barring any setbacks. After Thursday’s home matchup against the Boston Celtics, the Lakers will play five consecutive games outside of Southern California from Saturday through Feb. 1 before playing a road game against the Clippers on Feb. 4 at Intuit Dome. Vanderbilt had surgery on his feet in May and hasn’t played since suffering a sprained right midfoot injury in the Lakers’ road win against the Boston Celtics last Feb. 1. Vanderbilt, 25, was finding his rhythm on the court before being sidelined with the injury. He averaged 10.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 1.8 assists in his eight games (22.8 minutes) before suffering the foot injury. “It was tough,” Vanderbilt said when asked whether he had an idea he would be sidelined for nearly a calendar year. “I feel like I just found my rhythm at that time and [was] playing some of my best basketball. So it was tough at the time. Obviously, we elected to not go the route of getting it repaired. And then I did. So once you factor those in, then I kind of realized the timetable that it would kind of be so.” Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said on Sept. 25 that Vanderbilt also had a “lingering bone spur” in his left foot, leading to the defensive-minded forward having procedures on both feet. Pelinka originally said the team was optimistic that Vanderbilt would be available for the team’s season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 22, but that didn’t come to fruition. “I wouldn’t say it was hiccups, it was just part of the process,” Vanderbilt said. “We had a plan in place and it wasn’t more timetable-based, it was more so about measurement-based. Like, what can I do if I pass this and we kind of keep progressing. So honestly, I wouldn’t say it was a hiccup. It wasn’t really as much of a timetable. It was just what I could do and keep advancing and progressing.” The team said on Dec. 3 that his return was being targeted for early January, releasing a medical update at the time saying that Vanderbilt developed an effusion (swelling caused by fluid) in his left knee during his return-to-play process, altering the course of his progression. “I mean, it was normal,” Vanderbilt said of the swelling. “When you haven’t played in a while, I think when you just normal ramping up activities, to me it wasn’t nothing crazy … to them as well. It was just, when you haven’t [run] in [a] certain amount of months and started running a little bit … we [were] increasing intensity and conditioning and stuff like that, so it wasn’t really much.” Vanderbilt participated in the non-contact parts of practice on Dec. 30 and has practiced with the organization’s G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, as part of his return-to-play process. Redick said Vanderbilt participated in the non-contact portions of Wednesday’s practice before playing a “stay ready” game for the final portions of practice, which involved 4-on-4 full-court activity with players and then a 5-on-5 full-court period with coaches part of that game. “It was great, just to be back in my habitat of being able to run up and down the court, fly around and be me,” Vanderbilt said. “I had been working out a lot, so it was great to finally match up against other NBA guys or even, in some [cases], South Bay guys. So it was great.” Vanderbilt is in the first season of a four-year, $48 million contract extension he signed with the Lakers in September 2023, but has only appeared in 30 games of 130 games (regular-season, In-Season Tournament, play-in and playoffs) since signing the extension. He missed the first 20 games of the 2023-24 season because of a left heel ailment. Vanderbilt’s averaged 6.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 steals in 55 games (21.9 minutes) with the Lakers since being acquired by the team ahead of the 2023 trade deadline. He was a key part of the Lakers’ run to the 2023 Western Conference finals. “It’s been a process,” Vanderbilt said. “But I mean, credit to the staff, the guys, everybody in the organization for being patient and allowing me to heal and go through this full recovery process. I’m in a good place now.” Related Articles Lakers | Lakers rout Wizards to extend dominance against sub-.500 teams Lakers | Lakers loosen minutes restriction for Dorian Finney-Smith Lakers | Lakers’ roster construction comes into focus near midpoint of season Lakers | Swanson: What would it take for the Clippers to gain ground on the Lakers? Lakers | Lakers’ slim margin of error, uncertain identity exposed in loss to Clippers In addition to Vanderbilt’s imminent return, the Lakers were also focused on the defending NBA champion Celtics, who played the Clippers on Wednesday night ahead of Thursday’s matchup at Crypto.com Arena. “They’re tough to game plan for,” Redick said. “They create margins every night. And for us, a team that struggles to create margins at times, we’ve gotta be really cognizant of our turnovers. We’ve gotta be cognizant of keeping them off the offensive glass. We’ve gotta be cognizant of us getting extra possessions on the offensive glass. We’ve gotta be great because they are elite starting quarters, finishing quarters. “That’s not even including the disparity that will happen in 3-point shooting. They’re gonna launch. And we have to do a good job of scoring at the rim and limiting our mid-range and taking 3s.” CELTICS AT LAKERS When: Thursday, 7 p.m. Where: Crypto.com Arena TV/radio: TNT/710 AM