3 Los Angeles Lakers to blame for blowout opening night loss to Nuggets

2. Gabe Vincent

Having to be wise with relatively limited resources in the offseason, one of the "marquee" Lakers offseason acquisitions was landing former Heat guard Gabe Vincent.

The 27-year-old guard was a spark plug for the Miami Heat over the past couple of seasons, shooting 35.4% from long range and averaging around nine points per contest over that two-year span. For the Lakers trying to add some energy to its backcourt depth, Vincent seemed like a perfect budget-friendly addition to the roster.

We're not going to write Vincent off after one game, but suffice it to say he was not the presence that the Lakers were hoping for in his debut with his new team. Playing the most minutes (22) off of the bench against the Nuggets, the guard shot 0-for-4 on 3s for the night and was just 3-of-8 from the floor. More importantly, his defense was an issue as he contributed to a -17 plus-minus while in the game.

Behind D'Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves, the Lakers aren't exactly overflowing with quality backcourt options that they can bring off the bench. Vincent appears to be the best and most likely option for most nights, at least until the inevitable trade deadline moves. But for him to have the desired effect on this roster and rotation, he has to be better than he was in Denver on Tuesday night.