{"id":108056,"date":"2025-10-06T08:31:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-06T08:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=108056"},"modified":"2025-10-06T08:31:39","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T08:31:39","slug":"108056","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=108056","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING NEWS: The Lakers\u2019 most heated rotation battle might already be over just two preseason games in. One player has stepped up so strongly that coaches may have found their clear favorite for the regular season."},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"relative z-10\">\n<h3 class=\"my-2.5 text-black font-group-gigantic !leading-[30px] md:!leading-[44px]\">Lakers\u2019 biggest rotation battle already looks settled after second preseason game<\/h3>\n<div class=\"article-intro mb-4 text-darkGrey font-group-large md:font-group-normal lg:font-group-large !mb-2.5 md:mb-5\">Gabe Vincent will get the backup guard spot over Bronny James for the Los Angeles Lakers.<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"mb-0 md:mb-9 relative md:mx-10 md:mb-9\">\n<figure>\n<div class=\"overflow-hidden bg-lightGrey\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_360,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 1x, https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 2x, https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 719px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 1x, https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 2x, https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 1079px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 1x, https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 2x, https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FGettyImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg 3x\" media=\"(min-width: 1080px)\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full\" title=\"Los Angeles Lakers v Dallas Mavericks\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_157,w_2497,h_1404\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/GettyImages\/mmsport\/20\/01k6vhjrdz03gg0rvteb.jpg\" alt=\"Los Angeles Lakers v Dallas Mavericks\" width=\"2497\" height=\"1404\" data-uw-rm-alt-original=\"Los Angeles Lakers v Dallas Mavericks\" data-uw-rm-alt=\"ALT\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption>Los Angeles Lakers v Dallas Mavericks | Sam Hodde\/GettyImages<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"flex flex-wrap justify-center lg:justify-normal\">\n<div class=\"flex lg:mr-4 lg:w-[calc(70%-3em)] max-w-full\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"viewablity-block\">\n<figure class=\"player-wrapper relative aspect-video mb-[18px] bg-grey rounded-md hidden player-wrapper-lg md:block\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"article-content [&amp;_p]:leading-[30px] [&amp;_p]:md:leading-[28px] [&amp;_li]:leading-[30px] [&amp;_li]:md:leading-[28px]\">\n<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Bronny James is just not ready to overtake Gabe Vincent for a spot in the rotation for the Los Angeles Lakers. After only two preseason games, that much looks obvious.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">After missing the Lakers&#8217; first matchup against the Phoenix Suns, Vincent made his preseason debut against the Golden State Warriors. It was a 103-11 loss, but the team results do no count just yet. What does count is how much more polished the veteran guard looked than his younger counterpart.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Vincent scored 16 points and added five assists, shooting 4-of-9 from the field and 3-of-7 from beyond the arc. That is exactly the kind of stability that a team wants out of their backup point guard.<\/p>\n<p>Bronny continued to look like the unproven developmental project that a sophomore player taken in the second round of the NBA Draft tends to be. After a\u00a0strong summer league, the\u00a0hype train\u00a0for James was rampant.<\/p>\n<p>After just two games of preseason, the Lakers&#8217; decision on what to do with their young guard\u00a0should be crystal clear.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"scroll-mt-24 my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Bronny James needs more time to develop for the Lakers<\/h2>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">This conversation could begin and end with shot-making. James has been brutal in that aspect during the preseason thus far.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-7\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Bronny shot 1-of-12 from the field against the Suns in the Lakers&#8217; first contest. His only made bucket came from beyond the arc, but that would area would not be highlighted as a positive. James connected on 1-of-8 from 3-point land.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Naturally, evaluating preseason for shot-making is not always a reliable experience. However, with James, it is abundantly clear the level of comfort, that one would have hoped was being developed, is just not where it needs to be.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-9\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Bronny looked a bit better against the Warriors, but nowhere near enough to make one feel good about his presence. James had five points, shooting 2-of-6 from the field and 1-of-3 from deep. The second-year guard also gave away five turnovers in this one.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-10\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Extending this conversation past the offensive struggles, the defense, which is supposed to be his strong point, still lacks refinement. James has struggled navigating screens and sticking with his man. The tenacious defense that one would want to see out of someone as athletic as the Lakers guard has not provided the necessary results.<\/p>\n<p>There is still time for James to turn things around and render this assessment premature. However, for a team\u00a0wishing to pursue a championship\u00a0in 2025-26, Vincent is the much safer option off the bench.<\/p>\n<p>The veteran has certainly had his\u00a0fair share of low points in purple and gold. Even so, there are far less variables with the 29-year-old.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lakers\u2019 biggest rotation battle already looks settled after second preseason game Gabe Vincent will get the backup guard spot over Bronny James for the Los Angeles Lakers&#8230;. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":108060,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-108056","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>BREAKING NEWS: The Lakers\u2019 most heated rotation battle might already be over just two preseason games in. 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