The Los Angeles Lakers are making a move to boost their outside shooting, agreeing to trade Gabe Vincent and a 2032 second-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks for Luke Kennard,
Kennard gives the Lakers one of the most reliable perimeter shooters in the NBA. He is a career 44.2% three-point shooter and is connecting at a league-best 49.7% from beyond the arc this season. That efficiency could be a major lift for Los Angeles, which is currently shooting just 34.8% from three-point range as a team.
The addition comes as the Lakers push for improved positioning in the Western Conference standings. Los Angeles currently sits sixth in the West, just behind the Minnesota Timberwolves, and is looking to gain momentum during the final stretch of the regular season.
Vincent appeared in seven games for the Lakers this season, averaging 6.9 points and 1.3 assists in 19.3 minutes per game. According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, Atlanta plans to keep both Vincent and Buddy Hield, who was acquired in the Jonathan Kuminga trade earlier this week.
The Athletic reports that the Hawks also generated an $11 million trade exception by absorbing Vincent into the remaining exception from the Bogdan Bogdanović deal, which was set to expire soon.
Both Kennard and Vincent are on expiring contracts and are expected to become unrestricted free agents this summer, adding flexibility for both teams moving forward.