Gabe Vincent, a guard who used to play for the Miami Heat, was the first player the Los Angeles Lakers signed during NBA free agency. This turned into a $33 million deal, and the 27-year-old will try out his skills in Los Angeles for the next three years.

On Monday, Vincent was seen at the Summer League game of the team he just joined. Gabe chose the best time to show his newfound loyalty to the purple and gold team: when the Lakers played the Heat.

Vincent’s main goal right now, though, is to help his new team as much as he can. Last season, the 6-foot-3 point guard played well in his contract year, and the Lakers gave him a big raise. Now that Vincent has his money, he needs to show that he deserves every penny of it.

Some players lose their shine after signing a big-money deal, which is a shame. Lakers fans now hope that Vincent doesn’t end up like this. In fαct, Laker fans expect him to step up his game now that he is playing with LeBron James and the rest of the team. So much pressure comes with being a Lakers fan.

The Athletic’s NBA source Jovan Buha says that Gabe Vincent could be the starting point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers next season if he does better than D’Angelo Russell in training camp.

The Lakers re-signed Russell to a two-year, $37 million deal and gave Vincent a three-year, $33 million contract. Last year, both of them were starts.

“Russell is the early favorite to start at point guard, but Vincent could get the job if he plays better than him in training camp, team sources told The Athletic,” Buha wrote.

During the 2022-23 regular season, Vincent averaged 9.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists for the Heat. He shot 40.2% from the field, 33.4% from beyond the arc, and 87.2% from the line. He was the first player on the field in 34 games.

Vincent, who was 27 at the time, scored 12.7 points and 3.5 assists against the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, and Denver Nuggets in the 2023 playoffs. In the NBA Finals, the Heat lost to the Nuggets in five games. Russell was traded to the Lakers by the Minnesota Timberwolves at the trade deadline in February 2023. In his 17 games with the Lakers, Russell averaged 17.4 points, 6.1 assists, and 41.4% shooting from 3-point range. In the first two rounds of the 2023 playoffs, D’Lo did well against the Memphis Grizzlies and the Golden State Warriors. The player from Louisville averaged 15.7 points and 5.0 assists per game, and in Game 6 against the Grizzlies, he scored 31 points.

But Russell’s play against the Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals was so bad that many NBA fans thought the Lakers shouldn’t have re-signed him. As the Nuggets swept the Lakers, the lefty posted 6.3 points, 3.5 assists, and 32.3% shooting from the field and 13.3% shooting from deep. Russell had a hard time against the Nuggets, but the Lakers still brought him back. For the first time since LeBron James and Anthony Davis joined the team in 2019-20, the Los Angeles Lakers lost.