Austin Reaves, Darvin Ham credited Gabe Vincent’s defense, toughness vs. Pelicans

Gabe Vincent has been sensational for the Lakers since returning from knee surgery and saved his best game for the play-in.

For the Lakers to beat the Pelicans, it took an all-hands-on-deck approach from the entire roster. Starters like Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell stepped up big, which was needed with Anthony Davis limited dealing with back spasms.

The starting lineup deserves most of the credit for the win, but Gabe Vincent was sensational coming off the bench.

He led the second string with nine points on 50% shooting from the field and was elite defending on and off the ball. Vincent did all the dirty work needed to ensure the Lakers wouldn’t have to play another play-in matchup on Friday.

His numbers may not look impressive on the box score, but his impact is clear to head coach Darvin Ham and the rest of his Lakers teammates.

“Missing so much time with injury and you battle to come back, which he’s done, I don’t think there’s a tougher situation to come back to, especially time left in the year and the amount of games he had before this point,” Reaves said following the win. “It’s been super tough, I would assume, to catch a rhythm, catch a flow. Every possession, he’s out there competing on defense.

One of the best plays of the game is when he got the deflection, dove on the floor, got the steal and pitched it back to (Taurean Prince). Just that heart that he plays. We know how good he can shoot the ball regardless of how he shot it coming back so we encourage him to do that and just to be himself. Once he catches a rhythm, he’s going to bring a whole other dynamic to our team that we really like.”

Vincent has only played in 11 games for the Lakers this year. He has the rare opportunity to play more games in the postseason than the regular season and be a factor in determining just how far Los Angeles can go.

The absence of players like Vincent is one reason head coach Darvin Ham has stressed injuries impacting this team’s ability to maximize results.

After Vincent’s best game in a Lakers uniform, he gave his guard some well-deserved flowers.

“His toughness, his grit, his ability to make shots,” Ham said after the win. “Like I said, that will come as his legs get stronger and stronger underneath him, his shot-making will increase as well. But he has this quiet toughness about himself. Whatever you need him to do, he’s going to do it. He’s going to make sure he executes it. It starts with him. The defense, diving on the floor, everything, he’s a hell of a competitor.”

Coaches tend to like defense-first guys and Vincent certainly fits that category. He plays smart basketball, never extending himself beyond his ability or trying too hard to make something happen.

With such few games under their belts, the good news for the Lakers is that the best may still be yet to come from Vincent. After the biggest win of the season, he spoke about how he’s feeling as he continues to ramp up his play.

“Each game I feel better, naturally,” Vincent said. “There’s no replacing reps and I think that’s something I’ve missed most of this year. Whether it’s reps in practice or just getting shots up or a rhythm type thing. Each game I’ll feel better, naturally, and it’s always better when you get a win.”

Postseason basketball is all about winning and figuring out ways to get better. The Lakers are now among the 16 teams that will vie for a championship and Vincent, despite missing the vast majority of the year, is finally ready to help the Lakers on their journey toward a title.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.