Lakers News: Exec Considers Heat Free Agent Perfect Target For LA
Miami Heat point guard Gabe Vincent has, along with small forward Caleb Martin, emerged as one of the unsung heroes of the Jimmy Butler-led club's surprising ascent during the 2023 playoffs.
The team hits the road to try to stave off the Boston Celtics in Boston tonight. After kicking off the Eastern Conference Finals with a 3-0 start, the Heat have let the Celtics completely back into the series, as Boston has now matched Miami's win output. The series is knotted up at 3-3, making tonight's Game 7 for all the marvels.
Are the Heat playing a bit over their heads? Did the Celtics play a bit below their own capabilities? Perhaps.
What's not up for debate is that Vincent, and to a lesser extent starting shooting guard Max Strus (also a free agent this summer), is in line for a big raise from his extant $1.8 million contract.
A rival front office executive believes that Vincent, 26, could be a great fit on your Los Angeles Lakers, as Sean Deveney of Heavy.com details.
“Gabe Vincent from Miami, he is a free agent and could be had at a decent number,” the executive told Deveney. “It is hard to figure where he ranks as a shooter, and the Heat might go out of their way to keep him, but he’s the kind of fit they need there in L.A.”
LA has two incumbent point guards of its own hitting free agency, D'Angelo Russell and Dennis Schröder. Russell, given his one-time All-Star pedigree and status as a former No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft, may actually net more cash in free agency than Vincent, despite Vincent being better than either Laker.
Vincent, a solid defensive player, shooter and creator, supplanted future Hall of Famer Kyle Lowry as Miami's starting lead guard midway through the season, and has been one of the club's most essential non-All-Star players ever since.
In the Celtics series, the 6'3" guard out of UC Santa Barbara is averaging 17 points on an insane .500/.500/.938 shooting splits, 2.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.6 blocks a night. Across 16 playoff games overall, he's averaging 13.3 points on .409/.382/.893 shooting splits, 3.9 assists and 1.8 rebounds.
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