Ira Winderman: Gabe Vincent finding his legs with Lakers after free agency went sideways with Heat
MIAMI — No one need tell Gabe Vincent that NBA life comes at you fast.
On June 12, Vincent was in the Miami Heat’s starting lineup, playing in the NBA Finals, living the NBA dream.
Less than three weeks later, he was a former member of the Miami Heat.
Now, five months later, Vincent laughs at the irony of it all, on the eve of what would have been his return to Kaseya Center, if not for a nagging knee injury.
Going into last season’s playoffs, Vincent was a capable component of the Heat’s core, coming off a respectable if not overwhelming regular season. At that moment, he seemingly very much would fit into the Heat’s price point in free agency.
And then the playoffs happened, with Vincent in the starting lineup as the Heat pushed past the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, in the starting lineup as the Heat pushed past the New York Knicks in the conference semifinals, in the starting lineup as the Heat pushed past the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals. Pushing past, in the process, opposing fellow starting point guards such as Jrue Holiday, Jalen Brunson and Marcus Smart.
Suddenly, a valued component of a run within three wins of a championship. Suddenly, valued enough for the Los Angeles Lakers to offer $33 million over three years at the start of free agency, an offer Vincent couldn’t refuse.
“I kind of thought I’d be back,” Vincent said by phone from Los Angeles this past week to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, with the Lakers to play Monday in Miami. “But things change. I had an opportunity to perform the way I did in the playoffs, and I think that changed drastically what my offseason looked like.”
No sooner did Vincent agree to terms with the Lakers, then the Heat, in a rare acknowledgement of financial terms, put out that the team had countered with $34 million over four seasons, more total cash, but decidedly less per season.
To the Heat, it was a California kid going back to California, where he was raised and played collegiately, if not quite the same as LeBron James leaving the Heat in 2014 to return home to Ohio and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“It wasn’t like I was looking to get back this way as soon as possible,” said Vincent, whose roots are in Northern California, particularly the Sacramento arena. “My relationship with them is still very strong. It’s unfortunate that it didn’t work out, but it’s still business at the end of the day. And I had to make the best decision for my family.”
It wasn’t that the Heat offer was insulting; it just wasn’t commensurate.
“For me it was tough,” said Vincent, who counts many on the Heat roster as friends, his Heat tenure dating to the quarantine pandemic bubble at Disney World in 2020. “Obviously the dollar figure matters; I am human. I’m not going to say that didn’t play a role. At the end of the day the money situation was interesting.”
Had there been more time to calibrate, had there not been the distractions of Damian Lillard and Bradley Beal entering the trade market, it is possible Vincent, 27, still could be in his Heat No. 2, instead of a Lakers No. 7.
“I think the run we had shocked everyone,” Vincent said of the push to the NBA Finals last spring as a No. 8 seed. “I thought there’d be a place for me back there. And just unfortunately we just couldn’t come to an agreement. When things changed and I had an opportunity to play at a high level, I raised my value. I think that, alone, made it difficult. We were aware of that.”
That had Vincent and his agent in talks and agreement with the Lakers.
“It’s very different,” Vincent said of now playing for a legacy franchise. “No matter where you’re at, the Lakers, that name carries a lot of weight. And then the LeBron effect, you can’t talk about that team without talking about him in that way. It’s a lot of attention. It’s a lot of eyes. I wouldn’t say better or worse, it’s different.”
Then came a preseason back issue. Now the knee injury, out of commission for at least two weeks.
Eventually, there again will be footing, just as there was from an initial Heat two-way contract.
“A new way of doing things obviously is drastic,” he said. “The Heat pride themselves on being a little different than everyone, so it is a natural change for me. I’ve just been trying to learn each day of how we operate. So I’m trying to find my legs.”
In a way back home . . . after creating a home in Miami.
“I think going to school in Santa Barbara makes it feel more like home, as well,” he said, having gone undrafted out of UC-Santa Barbara in 2018. “It’s definitely not Sacramento. That’s where I spend my offseasons. L.A.’s a little of a different beast. But it was an adjustment for me, too, going from Sacramento to Miami.”
IN THE LANE
STRUS’ SIDE: Like Vincent, Max Strus also left the Heat in free agency after starting in the NBA Finals, landing with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a four-year, $62.3 million contract. Strus recently told Sports Illustrated that free agency had been weighing on him all of last season. “To be completely honest with you, you’re thinking about it all year,” Strus said, with the Heat’s salary-cap and luxury-tax position precluding an offer similar to the Cavaliers’. “Anybody who tells you differently would be lying to you. To me, it was, be the best you could be at that given moment, and everything will work itself out.”
GRECIAN FORMULA: After attempting to wait out the free-agent market to find an NBA landing spot, former Heat guard Kendrick Nunn followed through on his conditional agreement to otherwise sign with Greek League powerhouse Panathinaikos. There, Nunn, who split last season between the Lakers and Washington Wizards, will team with former Heat guard Kyle Guy, as well as former NBA players Jerian Grant and Juancho Hernangomez. Among former NBA players who have played for Panathinaikos are Dominique Wilkins, Byron Scott and Antonio Davis. Nunn, 28, is signed through the end of this season.
STILL PUSHING: A member of the Houston Rockets in salary only, former Heat guard Victor Oladipo remains in the midst of recovery from the torn patellar tendon he sustained during the Heat’s first-round playoff series last April against the Bucks. Oladipo, 31, offered an update on that process in an interview with GQ. “I’m about four months in right now,” he said. “I haven’t even started running yet — just to put it into perspective. I’m doing a lot better though. I feel really great. I feel balanced. Overall, I’ve had great days and not so good days, but I’ve remained consistent and level headed. With that mindset and approach, there’s always a chance to be successful. My story is a testimony of overcoming, and I’ve done it before.” Oladipo was dealt by the Heat to the Oklahoma City Thunder in July in a salary-cap move, with his salary then flipped by the Thunder to the Rockets. “Honestly, right now I don’t have a timeline, he said. “Right now it’s just waiting and seeing. My body will tell me. I’m just being patient and listening to my body.”
CASTING DOUBT: In an interview with Betway, former Heat guard Avery Bradley cast doubt on the Heat’s ability to return to the NBA Finals. “I feel like they will maybe get to the second round of the playoffs,” said Bradley, who along with Kelly Olynyk was dealt by the Heat to the Rockets at the 2021 NBA trading deadline for Oladipo. “I don’t want to just say no, because Erik Spoelstra is such a good coach and when it comes to playoff basketball, he’s just able to really get the guys to lock in, and his game plan is going to be on point. He’s going to prepare the players and put them in position to be successful. But I just feel like the Bucks with Damian Lillard – it’s hard to beat those guys. They’ve been able to beat Milwaukee in the past, but not this year. Not with Dame, it’s just not happening.”
NUMBER
4. Consecutive home losses by the Heat to the Brooklyn Nets, including Wednesday night’s 109-105 decision, without a home win against Brooklyn since Feb. 12, 2022. Overall, the Heat have lost five in a row to the Nets, who are back at Kaseya Center for their final visit of the season on Nov. 16.
