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Luke Kennard, who was acquired Thursday from the Atlanta Hawks for Gabe Vincent, played his role well. He had 10 points in his first game as a Laker, coming off the bench to go four for seven from the field and two for four from beyond the three-point line. He also had two assists and two rebounds. Kennard impressed James with his play. “I mean, it showed tonight, obviously. I mean, some of the ones that he had when he was driving, penetrating, kickout, some of them we didn’t make, but it’s just a great basketball play,” James said. “So, it’s going to help us have another ball handler, for sure. But then his shooting, how elite his shooting is, is going to help us as well, tremendously.”
Kevin Chouinard: Gabe Vincent is now listed as available.
Kevin Chouinard: For tomorrow’s game vs. Charlotte: Buddy Hield (trade pending) is questionable. Onyeka Okongwu (dental fracture) is questionable. Gabe Vincent (trade pending) is questionable. Jonathan Kuminga (left knee bone bruise/trade pending) is out.
Rui Hachimura on Gabe Vincent being traded to Atlanta for Luke Kennard: Gabe, I'm going to miss him. He was a great teammate. He was one of the leaders in here. He brought us a lot of energy, good energy, positive energy no matter what, up and down. He was always trying to keep us in the right direction. He was a very big part of our team’s chemistry. So, we for sure we're going to miss him. Luke, he's one of the best shooters in the league. So he's going to bring us that. W’eve been struggling from the three-point line this whole season. So he's going to bring us more spacing and all that.
Edwin Garcia: JJ Redick on trading Gabe Vincent "We all felt he was going to have a breakout year here... he's a good player and an even better person."
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Dave McMenamin: “He’s one of the best shooters in the NBA and I’m going to encourage him to shoot more” - JJ Redick offers his first thoughts on the Lakers trading for Luke Kennard, while praising Gabe Vincent for his time with the Lakers
Dan Woike: Not what people want to hear, but the Lakers and the people who worked with and around the team benefitted immensely from Gabe Vincent’s professionalism. Was always available, thoughtful and accountable with the press. Has the respect of his peers.
Yossi Gozlan: The Los Angeles Lakers get one of the best shooters in the league in Luke Kennard for Gabe Vincent and a second. They save $500,000 in the process, giving them more apron flexibility for the buyout market. The Lakers are now out of second-round picks to trade.
Bobby Marks: Double expiring contracts Kennard: $11M Vincent: $11.5M The 2032 second was the lone tradable second LAL had available.
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With Thursday’s trade deadline approaching, that path has only narrowed further. League sources say the Lakers have mostly been pushed to the margins. Some of it is their own doing. The Lakers’ strategy is built on preserving as much cap space as possible next summer when LeBron James’ $52 million contract expires and Austin Reaves’ cap hold projects to be half of his eventual salary. They will also have another $22.5 million coming off the books when contracts expire for veterans Maxi Kleber and Gabe Vincent.
So, the Lakers still have time to do a deal, but people not authorized to speak publicly on the matter say teams have little interest in guards Gabe Vincent and Dalton Knecht, the two most prominent players the Lakers seem to be pushing.
