With the Miami Heat having a lot of different lineups throughout the year, it was hard to get quality minutes off their bench but when Gabe Vincent came on the floor, you knew that he was going to leave it all on the court and especially on the defensive end. Vincent really made good strides on that side of the ball for Miami.
Last season, when Vincent was first introduced to Miami Heat fans, he was known as a three point shooter. But this past season, Vincent shot just 30 percent from three and likely due to changing his shooting mechanics, so let’s give him the benefit of the doubt to find his touch again on that one.
But offensively, overall, Vincent is just about okay on everything. I did like his driving to the rim more, as it just felt like when he drove to the rim, it would lead to a lot of hockey assist from him.
Those are the kind that even if he isn’t the direct giver of the assist, he’s the guy making the pass to the guy that allows that guy to make the assist. Even though that won’t show up on the box score for him or the team, it is still huge and an underrated thing to look at in a player that, ultimately, helps a team win ball games.
The Miami Heat know how to find talent as it reveals itself and Gabe Vincent is proving to be the next in a long line of examples.
Vincent still has some work to do offensively, this is true. However, if his jumper comes back to him, then he will definitely compete for playing time and especially with the efficiency of his financial situation for Miami.
Offensive Grade : C-
Where Vincent was really impressive this year was on the other side of the ball. Defensively, Vincent came in and surprised many fans with his ability to pressure ball handlers, doing a really good job staying in front of them.
The best thing I saw Vincent do this year was extending the zone defense, where him and Andre Iguodala would extend the zone to make it a full court press. Vincent and Iguodala really made it tough for opposing guards, at times, to get into their offense.
In limited minutes, that’s what you want from Vincent. That’s to muck up the game and make it dirty, slowing the game down in the process with his peskiness.
Defensive Grade : B
Vincent really needs to get that jumper fixed to where it was when he was at UC Santa Barbara. Heck, even if he can get it back to where it was before he starter playing regularly with the big ball club in Miami, that would help a ton.
There are always minutes to be had in the NBA. That stands double for a shooter that is also a more than willing and capable defender.
Overall Grade – C+
That is especially in Miami, where we all know what this organization is about when it comes to hard work. Right now, it’s looking like Vincent is a fourth guard on this team and with the offseason coming sooner rather than later, you don’t know who will be there next season.
That doesn’t mean Vincent wont be back next year but not many players on Miami are safe this offseason. With a mind toward’s Vincent cheaper contract though, he as strong a chance as any of the fringe guys with his two-way potential and we will see how much he continues to improve from this past season.