Does Gabe Vincent have chance to earn starting job with Lakers?

The Los Angeles Lakers added a nice piece in free agency by agreeing to a deal with Gabe Vincent. They also retained D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves, though they lost Dennis Schroder to the Toronto Raptors and Lonnie Walker to the Brooklyn Nets.

The Lakers will be bringing back some quality players in Russell and Reaves, but that doesn’t mean Vincent will necessarily be coming off the bench.

The Athletic’s Jovan Buha published a piece where he analyzed the Lakers’ roster in response to the first few days of free agency. Though he reported that Russell is the favorite to start at point guard for the Lakers, Buha noted that Vincent would have a chance to earn the starting job.

Vincent got a three-year, $33M deal with the Lakers. Though that’s not huge money, it shows the Lakers see Vincent as an important rotation player at minimum.

The 27-year-old guard started 34 games last season for the Miami Heat while appearing in 68 contests overall. He averaged 9.4 points and 2.5 assists per game. 

Vincent picked up his game during the Heat’s NBA Finals run, averaging 12.7 points and 3.5 assists per game. At minimum, Vincent gives the Lakers some nice flexibility.