ESPN anchor Stephen A. Smith did not hold back when expressing his opinion on Team USA’s recent loss to Nigeria in an exhibition basketball game.
“There’s no excuse to lose to Nigeria,” Smith said recently. “Some dude Gabe Nnamdi, who goes by Gabe Vincent, for the Miami Heat.”
During his rant, Smith certainly dissed and dismissed Vincent. Despite that, the young guard had an outstanding game for Nigeria, totaling 21 points, two rebounds and four assists.
Vincent is still growing into his role in the NBA and hasn’t been much of a factor yet in the early stages of his career. In the 2020-21 season, he averaged 4.8 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. He made just 37.8 percent of his shots.
Rather than ragging on Vincent, a more appropriate takeaway from his strong performance in the exhibition may have been to recognize how talented NBA players are from the top to bottom of any given roster. As soon as Vincent got an opportunity to play an increased role for a new team, he flourished.
It will be interesting to see if Vincent will be able to sustain his success throughout the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.