SUMMARY
- Gabe Vincent is expected to finally make a return to the Lakers.
- LeBron James thinks Vincent will be a bonus for the team but wants him to make a cautious return.
LeBron James was recently interviewed and asked about his thoughts regarding Gabe Vincent and his expected return to the Los Angeles Lakers. As most NBA fans will know Vincent joined the Lakers at the start of this season but has played in just a handful of games. He sustained a knee injury and underwent surgery, causing Gabe to miss the bulk of this season.
When asked about Gabe’s return, LeBron James revealed more about the conflicted thoughts that he and the rest of the Lakers were feeling regarding Vincent’s return. After all, knee surgery is quite a serious and complicated process.
“I don’t even really want to get into it too much don’t want to put too much pressure on him. When he’s ready to go he will be a bonus for our team. But he’s been out for quite a while though. Whenever he’s ready, we’ll welcome him back with open arms. He’s a brother of ours, a teammate of ours…We’re waiting on him but at the end of the day, we’re putting no pressure on him. So, he needs to take his time.”
LeBron James tempers expectations on Gabe Vincent’s return saying, “whenever he’s ready, we’ll welcome him back with open arms … but at the end of the day, we’re putting no pressure on him. So, he needs to take his time” pic.twitter.com/kqo2Do6dcr
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 30, 2024
While LeBron made it clear that getting Vincent back would help the Lakers, he also opined that there was no pressure for Gabe to make a return. This might make fans wonder about the truth behind those statements.
The Lakers’ record with Gabe Vincent is 2 wins and 3 losses
Since Gabe has just played in 5 games this season, it is quite a small sample size of his abilities and value to the Lakers. His games were against the Chicago Bulls, Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets, and Sacramento Kings. Although he managed to help the team win against the Suns and Magic, they lost the other 3 games.
Should Vincent remain sidelined for the rest of the season?
Gabe has been dealing with injuries all season long. In his absence, Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell have established themselves as a solid backcourt for the Lakers. Throwing a newly recovered Vincent into the mix and expecting him to have any kind of significant positive impact can be considered unreasonable.