The 27-year-old Vincent went undrafted out of UC Santa Barbara in 2018, but as they so often do with unheralded players, the Miami Heat signed him and developed him into an important contributor.
Last season, Vincent had a career year for the Heat, averaging 9.4 points, 2.5 assists, 2.1 rebounds and 1.7 three-pointers made per game, and starting 34 of the 68 contests he appeared in.
He then proceeded to up his level of play significantly during the postseason, starting all 22 games he played in during Miami’s run to the NBA Finals. His production saw a big uptick as well to the tune of 12.7 points, 3.5 assists, 2.3 three-pointers made and 1.4 rebounds per contest.
Given Vincent’s ability to rise to the occasion on the big stage, the Lakers used most of their mid-level exception to sign him to a three-year, $33 million deal in free agency.
Unfortunately for Vincent and the Lakers, a knee injury cost him nearly all of the 2023-24 regular season, but he returned at the end of March and appeared in 11 games overall.
While Vincent was unable to be the type of supporting cast member around LeBron James, Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves that the Lakers hoped for when they signed him, he showed a glimpse of what he could offer in the play-in.
Now, Vincent and the Lakers will move on to face the second-seeded Denver Nuggets in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
The Lakers showed last season that they could go on a deep playoff run despite going through the play-in, as they reached the Western Conference Finals, but it was there that they lost to Denver.
The Nuggets are the defending NBA champions and are favored to knock off the Lakers again with Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray leading the way, but the Lakers have a more complete team than last season, and Vincent’s arrival is a big reason.
