One of the bigger moves the Los Angeles Lakers made during the 2023 NBA offseason was signing point guard Gabe Vincent in free agency. Vincent was coming off a strong postseason run with the Miami Heat, helping lead the team to the NBA Finals, where they were defeated by the Denver Nuggets.
Vincent was expected to play a major role for the Lakers during the 2023-24 season, providing the team with another 3-and-D option around LeBron James and Anthony Davis. He knocked down 37.8 percent of his 3-point attempts in last season’s playoffs, taking over the starting spot from Kyle Lowry.
Unfortunately, things have not gone according to plan. Vincent struggled mightily out of the game with his new team, struggling with his jump shot. It turned out he was battling an injury, as Vincent played in the first four games of the season before sitting out for nearly two months.
He returned to the court on December 20th against the Chicago Bulls, but something still wasn’t right. After that game he went back to the sidelines, opting to have surgery on his knee instead of attempting to push through.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Gabe Vincent & Los Angeles Lakers Updates
Sidelined for nearly another three months, it sounds as if Vincent is getting close to a return. During an appearance on Run It Back on Fanduel TV, NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium revealed a very positive update for the Los Angeles point guard.
“Gabe Vincent is doing more and more on the court…Barring any setbacks, his hope is still mid to late March to get back in the lineup for the Lakers,” Charania said on the show with Michele Beadle and former NBA players Chandler Parsons and Lou Williams.
The Lakers opted to stay pat ahead of the NBA Deadline, hoping some positive regression would come their way. Internal improvement was the goal, as they hoped some of their injured players would get back into the lineup and help turn things around.
One of those players is Vincent, who is ramping up his activity per Charania and working toward a return. It will be interesting to see how head coach Darvin Ham handles the backcourt rotation upon his return, as D’Angelo Russell is playing lights-out basketball. Vincent could compete with Spencer Dinwiddie for the minutes behind him and Austin Reaves in the backcourt.
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