The Miami Heat are known for their scouting & development, a key in their success over the years. It looks like they’ve found another one in Gabe Vincent.
The Miami Heat have become known for a few things over the years, famously and infamously. They are known as a no-nonsense team that won’t hesitate to get down and dirty with the opposition.
They have come to be known as a team that will always work as hard as you have ever seen a team work on the floor. They are also a team that is known for being in tip-top shape, almost all of the time. It’s often said that when a player comes to or leaves the Miami Heat, they’ll be in or getting into the best shape of their lives.
Finally and something else that the Miami Heat have come to be known for is their scouting and player development department. While they have found a name or two in the NBA draft, their real eye for talent appears when you start to think about the developmental league, unheralded journeymen, or undrafted free agent rookie talent that they manage to find.
When looking at the current roster, two guys that have massive roles on this team and that are a large part of the reason for the Miami Heat’s success this season fit those categories. Kendrick Nunn went undrafted, before catching on with the Golden State Warriors’ G-League affiliate.
He was signed by the Miami Heat near the end of the season last season, leading them to have to get rid of a guy in Rodney McGruber, but only to ensure that they would have Nunn locked up for this season and beyond.
Duncan Robinson, arguable the best shooter in the game, fits that bill too. He was undrafted out of Michigan, but picked up, developed, and deployed this season by the Miami Heat as a one-man army from the three-point line.
Miami Heat two way guy, Gabe Vincent, has lit the G-League up in his second season. The Heat have done it again!
Well, it seems the Miami Heat may have done it again. A player even before he arrived with the Miami Heat and while he has shown what he can do when given the opportunity with the big club this season, Gabe Vincent was brought in under a two-way contract from the Stockton Kings, the G-League affiliate of the Sacramento Kings.
Furthermore, the hot shooting guard has even been named the most improved G-league player this year by some. SBNation’s Ridiculous Upside has named Vincent the most improved player this season by their calculations.
Vincent went from averaging 8.7 points, 2.6 assists, and 2.3 rebounds on 38 percent shooting overall and 29 percent from deep in his rookie season, to averaging 25.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.2 steals on 48 percent shooting overall and 42 percent from deep this season, up until being signed by the Heat.
Even across only 11 games with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Miami Heat’s G-league affiliate, he put up 16.4 points, 1.9 assists, and 1.7 rebounds per game on 39 percent shooting overall and 37 percent from three. Per Ridiculous Upside, here is what Vincent’s coach with the Stockton Kings in Ty Ellis, had to say about Vincent’s evolution from one year to the next.
"“Gabe used last season as motivation to prove to himself that he belonged in the NBA,” Stockton Kings head coach Ty Ellis told Ridiculous Upside. “He fully committed to the mental and physical development that is required. He studied film, embraced coaching, and worked out with more purpose and focus. I’m extremely proud and thankful to have been a part of his journey.”"
It’s safe to say that the Miami Heat have found another one. And you just love to see it.