NBA Rumors: Los Angeles Lakers to get playoff spark with return of rotation guard

NBA Rumors: With Gabe Vincent expected back from injury, can he provide the Los Angeles Lakers with a playoff spark?

It's been far from an ideal season for the Los Angeles Lakers. After making a somewhat surprising run to the Western Conference Finals last year, the hope was that the team would be able to pick up where they left off heading into this season. However, that hasn't exactly been the case for the Lakers. Instead of emerging as a potential dark horse Western Conference contender, the Lakers have looked more like a Play-In Tournament team for the majority of the season.

However, heading into the final stretch before the NBA playoffs, the hope is that the Lakers could flip a proverbial switch in an attempt to re-emerge as a potentially dangerous postseason team. After all, from a talent perspective, there's reason to believe that the Lakers could make some noise in the playoffs. As long as LeBron James and Anthony Davis are healthy, they're going to be two of the most talented players in any playoff series. The big question for the Lakers has always revolved around whether or not they have enough of a supporting cast to truly make waves.

The Los Angeles Lakers could get a spark from the return of Gabe Vincent

That's where a return from Gabe Vincent could come into play for the Lakers. According to a recent report, Vincent is expected to make his return from injury this weekend. Vincent has missed the majority of the season for the Lakers, but even when he was healthy, he struggled to look like a natural fit on the team.

In only five games played this season, Vincent averaged five points and three assists on 38 percent shooting from the field. But because he was one of the team's prized signings during the offseason, hope remains that he could potentially spark this team into an unforeseen playoff run.

At the very least, the return of Vincent will give the Lakers more flexibility and an added guard that they could throw into the rotation if they choose to. Ultimately, Vincent's potential impact on the Lakers will all depend on how healthy and comfortable he is when he makes his return to the floor.

Because Vincent never looked right at any point this season when playing for the Lakers, it'll be interesting to see how he looks after missing the majority of this season with a knee injury. And, you never know, perhaps he could provide a late-season spark for the Lakers.