{"id":59745,"date":"2023-12-11T17:00:48","date_gmt":"2023-12-11T22:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=59745"},"modified":"2023-12-11T17:00:48","modified_gmt":"2023-12-11T22:00:48","slug":"lakers-news-gabe-vincent-eyeing-return-next-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/12\/11\/lakers-news-gabe-vincent-eyeing-return-next-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Lakers News: Gabe Vincent Eyeing Return Next Week"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Days after the Lakers won the In-Season Tournament, the team received some more encouraging news. Guard <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/v\/vincega01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Gabe Vincent<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who is currently dealing with a left knee effusion, is hoping to return to action next Monday, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/theathletic.com\/5126208\/2023\/12\/11\/pascal-siakam-zach-lavine-trade-rumors-nba-hawks-kings-bulls\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">according to NBA insider Shams Charania<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. His return has implications for the team\u2019s guard depth and overall play, as the Lakers regain full strength following tournament excellence.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Lakers News: Gabe Vincent Eyeing Return Next Week<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3><b>Background<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Vincent last played on Oct. 30 against the Magic, recording nine points (4\/7 FG), two assists and one steal. It was his best performance following a rough start to the season. In four games, he\u2019s averaged six points, one rebound and three assists on 39% shooting from the field and 7% from three. It\u2019s a far cry from last season, when he performed well as the Miami Heat\u2019s sixth man and started at point guard during their run to the Finals.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Lakers have gone 12-7 in Vincent\u2019s absence and currently sit fourth in the West with a 14-9 record. With the team recently adding <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/v\/vandeja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Jarred Vanderbilt<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hachiru01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Rui Hachimura<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, bringing Vincent on board has a plethora of benefits.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>What Gabe Vincent\u2019s Return Means for the Lakers<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As expected, it may take a while for Vincent to readjust to game speed, and his first few contests could come with a minutes restriction. However, a video from LA Times sports writer Dan Woike showed Vincent going through a rigorous pregame workout.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Gabe Vincent going through a fairly intense pregame workout today <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Ioy28XhIE8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/Ioy28XhIE8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DanWoikeSports\/status\/1733627009312657579?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 9, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He\u2019ll eventually be able to make a dent in the team\u2019s offense, adding an extra playmaker next to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>LeBron James<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/davisan02.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Anthony Davis<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Additionally, Vincent gives the Lakers another perimeter defender, fortifying the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/defense?dir=A&amp;sort=DEF_RATING\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">seventh-best defense in the league<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Hopefully, he\u2019ll also be able to get out of the shooting slump that plagued him to start the season.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>How Vincent Impacts Austin Reaves and Other Guards<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of the reasons why the Lakers have succeeded recently is due to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/r\/reaveau01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Austin Reaves<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2019s role off the bench. Vincent would have been LA\u2019s sixth man with Reaves starting, but those requirements have shifted due to the veteran&#8217;s injury.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once he returns, Gabe could slide into the backup facilitator role while Reaves moves to the two. Reaves would still have freedom as a scorer, but the facilitating duties would largely fall into Vincent\u2019s hands. Judging by Reaves\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.silverscreenandroll.com\/2023\/12\/9\/23995363\/austin-reaves-lakers-pacers-in-season-tournament-finals-flu-game-michael-jordan-lebron-james\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">breakout performance<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the IST championship\u201428 points on 9\/15 shooting\u2014there\u2019s no doubt he can continue that stellar production next to a pass-first guard like Vincent.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another player impacted by Vincent\u2019s comeback is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/chrisma02.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Max Christie<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. In 18 games (five starts), he averaged five points, nearly three rebounds and one assist per game. He also shot 41% from the field, 31% from three and 71% from the line. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/12\/03\/how-has-max-christie-handled-his-increased-role-for-the-lakers\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Christie played a larger role<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> due to LA\u2019s injuries, and he\u2019s done just enough to help them when their depth has been tested significantly. He\u2019ll have to take a backseat when Vincent plays significant minutes, but he\u2019s earned the trust of Lakers coaches and fans in a short period of time.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>The Last Word<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gabe Vincent\u2019s return comes during an optimal period for the Lakers, who will face the Knicks, Bulls, Timberwolves and Thunder next week. His comeback also means that Reaves and Christie will see a slight decrease in their respective roles. However, they&#8217;ll continue to be key guys within the Lakers rotation. The Lakers are getting healthy at a perfect time, and fans have plenty to look forward to as an exciting season continues.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Days after the Lakers won the In-Season Tournament, the team received some more encouraging news. Guard Gabe Vincent, who is currently dealing with a left knee effusion, is hoping to return to action next Monday, according to NBA insider Shams Charania. His return has implications for the team\u2019s guard depth and overall play, as the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4265,"featured_media":59758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,26,62],"tags":[240,4556,3839,4921,38,4916],"class_list":["post-59745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-lakers","category-nba","tag-anthony-davis","tag-austin-reaves","tag-darvin-ham","tag-gabe-vincent","tag-lebron-james","tag-max-christie"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4265"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59745"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59745\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}