Arguably the biggest signing the Los Angeles Lakers made last offseason was bringing in point guard Gabe Vincent on a three-year, $33 million contract. Coming off an impressive postseason run the prior year with the Miami Heat, Vincent was viewed as an ideal addition being capable of playing on and off the ball, defend point guards at a high level and knock down open jumpers.
Unfortunately for Vincent, his season never even got the chance to get going as he dealt with knee issues that kept him out for basically the entirety of the year. After just four games, Vincent would be forced to sit out and eventually undergo surgery to fix the problem.
Vincent would return for one game in December, but the issues persisted and he would immediately be sat down again. The guard would work hard to rehab and recover throughout the remainder of the season and would return for the Lakers at the end of the regular season, appearing in six of the team’s last eight games as well as all five of the team’s playoff games against the Denver Nuggets.
But it takes time to get back in rhythm after being out for that long, not to mention the lack of chemistry between Vincent and his Lakers teammates due to not having enough time on the court together. Simply put, there was just no chance for Vincent to find that and be the contributor the Lakers hoped he would be.
In 11 contests, Vincent averaged just 3.1 points and 1.9 assists while shooting 30.6% from the field.
2023-24 Highlight
There just isn’t much to choose from for Vincent due to his limited availability. If there is one game that gave the Lakers a glimpse of what he could bring to the team it was in their second game of the season against the Phoenix Suns.
While Vincent wasn’t very efficient that night, shooting just 3-of-10 from the field and 0-of-5 from deep, he was able to show off his all-around game finishing with three rebounds, six assists and three steals to go along with seven points in the Lakers’ win.
2024-25 Outlook
Gabe Vincent has said he is completely healthy going into the 2024-25 season and he is once again set to have a big role as the first guard off the bench for JJ Redick. The expectations for Vincent should be the same as last season with him being a secondary creator and scorer who will often be tasked with defending the opposition’s top guard.
The key, of course, for Vincent will be staying healthy and as long as he can do that he should be a main part of the rotation. With the Lakers making very few moves this summer, their hopes of improvement must come from players like Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt returning from injury and providing that boost and the former has proven more than capable of delivering in big games.
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