Gabe Vincent On His Health, 3-Point Shooting and Opportunity: 'The Time Has Come'
Gabe Vincent has a chance to seize the Miami Heat's backup point guard job. After navigating a lengthy rehab from knee surgery over the last year, he finally appears ready to contribute.
I’m taking a break from the usual Weekly Observations because I’ll have similar takeaways on Monday for my 20-game state of the union. In the meantime, I spoke with Gabe Vincent about finally being healthy and earning a role in the Miami Heat’s rotation.
Gabe Vincent’s rousing dunk against the Washington Wizards last week was the most emphatic way the 25-year-old guard could advertise that the injuries that limited him in his first two NBA seasons are behind him.
After missing a straight-away 3-pointer in the second quarter, Vincent recovered the offensive rebound, took two long strides between three Wizards defenders and lept for a two-handed dunk.
But as Vincent jogged back on defense, did he think about this full-circle moment after undergoing knee surgery in 2020 or being sidelined nine months after tearing his ACL in college? “Not one bit,” Vincent said.
“The better my body feels and these opportunities come just like before, I'm just trying to take advantage,” Vincent said in a phone call Wednesday. “I just feel a little bit better body-wise now that the time has come.”
Now it’s Vincent’s time, and the player who says he never lost faith in his ability to contribute in the NBA has remained steadfast in that belief — as underscored by his nonchalant reaction to his first professional dunk.
Over his last five games, Vincent is averaging 10.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 44% from 3-point range in 21.7 minutes.
“I feel great,” Vincent said. “Obviously, I have been putting in a lot of work on my game and it’s nice that it’s finally paying off under the big lights, but it was a matter of time. I don’t think I ever lost faith in who I was.”
Despite being an after-thought in the rotation for much of the start of the season, Vincent has come off the bench for at least 15 minutes in seven of the Miami Heat’s last eight games, including last Thursday’s 18-point performance against the Wizards. In Tuesday’s win against the Pistons and Wednesday’s loss to the Timberwolves, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra favored Vincent’s defense and playmaking over Max Strus’ outside shooting.
“He’s earned those minutes,” Spoelstra said.
Vincent, who after going undrafted out of UC Santa Barbara in 2018 spent two years with the Sacramento Kings G League affiliate, signed a two-way contract with the Heat in January 2020. But Vincent was hindered by a knee injury in the bubble and underwent surgery a few months later. An abbreviated offseason didn’t give Vincent enough time to fully recover, and he was limited to 4.8 points on 37.8% shooting (30.9% from 3-point range) and 1.3 assists in 50 games in his second season.
“I don’t think it was really fair to evaluate last year,” Spoelstra added. “He wasn’t healthy.”
To get right, Vincent spent this more-typical summer working out in Sacramento and participating in the Tokyo Olympics as part of the Nigerian national team, where he picked the brains of other NBA players such as Chimezie Metu (Kings), Miye Oni (Jazz), Josh Okogie (Timberwolves) and Jordan Nwora (Bucks).
During an Olympic exhibition in Las Vegas, Vincent poured in 21 points against Team USA, outscoring the likes of Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard and Bradley Beal. Just because it was an exhibition didn’t mean Vincent was going to overlook the opportunity to prove himself to his NBA teammates and opponents.
This is someone with just one guaranteed year left on his contract and knows what it’s like to be injured when he should be establishing his NBA career.
“You feel the pressure, the time constraint. You’re a young player, you don’t wanna miss anything,” Vincent said. “You hear 6-8 weeks [for an injury recovery] and your immediate thought is how can I get it to five weeks? I think it’s more of the eagerness, the anxiety of not wanting to miss an opportunity.”
Now in his third year, Vincent has a chance to carve out a meaningful role for a team with championship aspirations. Having studied film of Kyle Lowry for years, he relishes the opportunity to learn from one of the past decade’s best point guards. His locker at FTX Arena sits between Duncan Robinson and Bam Adebayo, two of the hardest workers on the team. Like Robinson, Vincent began the season in a shooting slump having missed 11 of his first 12 3s, but has since made 11 of his last 26 (42.3%).
“I am truly happy for him,” Adebayo said of Vincent. “He’s one of my closest friends and he’s like a brother to me.”
If Vincent can seize the backup point guard position, it would go a long way in strengthening Miami’s bench. But the clock is still ticking for Vincent because this might be his best chance. As recent reports indicate, the Heat are interested in adding John Wall should the 31-year-old agree to a buyout with the Rockets. If that’s the case, Vincent could see his minutes diminish by the mid-point of the season. While he keeps getting the playing time, he needs to perform well.
“Every level requires something different, whether it be the opportunity, level of work ethic, whatever the case may be,” Vincent said. “But I never lost faith in who I am. I’m just glad that I'm getting some opportunities.”