Three-point shooting is paramount in the NBA, and ahead of Thursday afternoon’s trade deadline the Lakers acquired one of the most deadly marksmen in the league.
Los Angeles is sending veteran point guard Gabe Vincent and a 2032 second-round pick to the Hawks for Luke Kennard, a 29-year-old shooting guard who is hitting just under 50% of his threes on the season. ESPN’s Shams Charania was first to report the move.
With the deal, the Lakers help create space in their offense while Atlanta creates an $11 million trade exception, giving itself more roster flexibility, Charania reports.
Luke Kennard, Gabe Vincent 2025–26 stats
Kennard’s value to Los Angeles is clear: his three-point percentage of .497 (on 3.2 attempts per game) is tops in the NBA, and if anything he should get more open looks given the danger that Luka Dončić and LeBron James present to opposing teams. Kennard’s 12.7% usage rate with the Hawks was also the lowest of his career so far.
Kennard previously led the league in three-point percentage in 2021–22 (.449) with the Clippers and 2022–23 (.494) with the Clippers and Grizzlies. He was in his first year with Atlanta.
| MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20.5 | .538 | .497 | .914 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 7.9 |
Vincent has been a valuable rotational guard for the Lakers for three seasons.
| MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19.3 | .346 | .369 | .909 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 4.8 |
The NBA trade deadline is at 3 p.m. ET Thursday. Catch up on all of the moves around the league with our live trade deadline updates tracker.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Lakers Acquire Veteran Sharpshooter From Hawks Ahead of Trade Deadline.
