The Los Angeles Lakers attached a second-round pick to Gabe Vincent before the February deadline, sending him to the Hawks for Luke Kennard. Though the latter spent only a few months in LA, Wednesday's news further proved he was the better option entering the postseason than Vincent.
New York signed a handful of veterans to training camp deals: Bruce Brown, Ochai Agbaji, John Konchar, Drew Euabnks, and James Wiseman. Ian Begley of SNY reported that Vincent worked out with the team, but he wasn't one of the players who received an Exhibit 9 deal.
With the Heat not making an offer to Konchar in time, there has rightfully been speculation that Miami could bring Vincent in before training camp. As Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported, though, the Heat are "holding onto" their open roster spot "in case something needle-moving shakes free in months ahead."
In other words, not only was Vincent not one of the players the Knicks are bringing in to compete for a roster spot, but the Heat don't seem interested in him either.
Gabe Vincent may not reunite with Heat after all
The Lakers signed Vincent to a three-year, $33 million deal in 2023 free agency after he became one of Miami's most impactful players. He was coming off a season in which he averaged a career-high 9.4 points in 68 games, but what sold Los Angeles was his playoff performance: he averaged 12.4 points in 30.5 minutes over 22 games in the Heat's run to the NBA Finals.
Los Angeles never got the version of Vincent that Miami did, so knowing that he wasn't in the team's plans, they took a swing on Kennard. He at least helped the shorthanded Lakers beat the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, while Vincent was a non-factor for the Hawks in their first-round series against the Knicks, averaging only 4.3 points per game.
It feels like Vincent's best shot at reviving his career would be under Erik Spoelstra in Miami, since that's where he found success, but the Heat could opt to keep their roster spot open rather than bring him in for training camp. That's the best indicator of how the league views him.
It wasn't a good look for Los Angeles to attach a draft asset to Vincent's contract for Kennard, only to lose him in free agency to Phoenix, but since it's mid-September and Vincent is still on the market, the Lakers can feel a little better about it.
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