2022 NBA Summer League

[CameronBornAndBred]

DJ Steward did not play.

Sigh.
Worst. Draft Decision. Ever.

ComicBookGuy.jpg

[Alan_Wilson]

Is Bolden not giving the Summer League a go? He played pretty well the last two seasons, enough to latch onto the end of the bench for the Cavs and Jazz albeit not really get playing time.

I'm always rooting for the Dukies who are trying to crack the league. One guy I think has a good chance is Javin. He really showed an aptitude for offensive rebounding and even expanded his offensive game in the most recent summer league. As a result, he was on the Bucks roster off and on. I believe I saw the Spurs signed him, which is an optimal situation for him, I think. They are obviously rebuilding and I think he can prove himself and get some burn on the actual roster coming off the bench.

[Billy Dat]

Is Bolden not giving the Summer League a go? He played pretty well the last two seasons, enough to latch onto the end of the bench for the Cavs and Jazz albeit not really get playing time.

I follow him on IG (@marques) and it looks like he's playing for a team in Indonesia. His pics make it look like he's having a mind expanding world travel adventure so that kind of thing also has its benefits.

It may not be as mind expanding as Chase Jeter (@yhase_), but maybe that's ok.

[MartyClark]

I follow him on IG (@marques) and it looks like he's playing for a team in Indonesia. His pics make it look like he's having a mind expanding world travel adventure so that kind of thing also has its benefits.

It may not be as mind expanding as Chase Jeter (@yhase_), but maybe that's ok.

I'm not on IG (Instagram?) but am certainly interested in Chase Jeter's adventures. Can you share?

[sagegrouse]

I follow him on IG (@marques) and it looks like he's playing for a team in Indonesia. His pics make it look like he's having a mind expanding world travel adventure so that kind of thing also has its benefits.

It may not be as mind expanding as Chase Jeter (@yhase_), but maybe that's ok.

Cross-thread realignment: isn't Marques on the Indonesian National Team and playing in the Asian-Pacific regional tournament -- right now?

[brevity]

Day 2 in Salt Lake City. In addition to Johnny Juzang being under concussion protocol, DJ Funderburk missed yesterday's Jazz game because of knee soreness. No updated info yet.

Click on a team name to see its roster. Click on a channel to watch online. All times Eastern.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 6

Grizzlies vs. Thunder, 7pm on ESPN2 (Spanish feed on ESPN3, late night replays on NBA TV)

Sixers vs. Jazz, 9pm on ESPN2 (Spanish feed on ESPN3, late night replays on NBA TV)

Tangential programming note: If you've got a fever, and the only prescription is more Holmgren...

#1 Gonzaga vs. #5 Duke, midnight on ACCN

[brevity]

Results from Day 2 in Salt Lake City.

Thunder 87, Grizzlies 71 (box score, highlights)

Chet Holmgren did not yet fulfill his promise to exceed his SLC Summer League record of 6 blocks, but otherwise he did fine with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Josh Giddey had a triple double (14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) -- it's like if a young Russell Westbrook had played for the Thunder!

On the Memphis side, draft picks Jake LaRavia, David Roddy, and Kennedy Chandler did not play, and undrafted Keve Aluma was scoreless in 11 minutes. Kenneth Lofton Jr (listed on the roster as 6'8" and 275 lbs) created an unusual matchup with Holmgren, and he led the Grizzlies with 19 points.



Despite playing in the NBA combine, Lofton was not measured there. Fortunately, we have his anthropometric results and skill tests at the G League Elite Camp, held in May. He was an inch and a half shorter, and 5 pounds heavier.

Back to the Thunder. This Jalen Williams/Jaylin Williams thing is already getting to me. Maybe the announcers too. "One of them is called J-Dub and the other is J-Will." Okay, but which is which? "There's Jaylin with a Y, and Jalen with an L." Go away.

Also, their jersey numbers are 6 (Jaylin) and 8 (Jalen). When I read a credit card number or a phone number without eyeglasses, those are the two digits I have the hardest time differentiating. At this point it's just trolling. If Sam Presti were a Hollywood producer instead of the OKC Thunder's general manager, the first thing he would do is cast Jessica Chastain and Bryce Dallas Howard as the leads in a movie together.

Sixers 86, Jazz 82 (box score, highlights)

A late Jazz run kept it interesting, but the Sixers pulled away in the final minute. Decent play from the starting centers, as Charles Bassey (Sixers) had 17 points and 9 rebounds, while Bruno Caboclo (Jazz) had 16 and 6. So far Summer League hasn't been the foul-fest that awhom111 likes to see, but Caboclo did use 7 of his 10 fouls. The crowd chanted "Tacko! Tacko!" in the 4th quarter, but Tacko Fall did not play. (Or they were chanting for a free taco, but neither of these teams were going to reach 100 points.)

In related Utah news, the Rudy Gobert trade with Minnesota was finalized today, which means that Walker Kessler and Leandro Bolmaro -- both on the Summer League roster for the Timberwolves prior to the trade -- are with the Jazz now. Will they play Thursday in their new home of Salt Lake City, or will they debut Saturday in Las Vegas?

[awhom111]

I follow him on IG (@marques) and it looks like he's playing for a team in Indonesia. His pics make it look like he's having a mind expanding world travel adventure so that kind of thing also has its benefits.

It may not be as mind expanding as Chase Jeter (@yhase_), but maybe that's ok.

Chase did post something interesting recently about his time in college. Seems like he may never play professional basketball, which would make him the first Duke scholarship player since Brian Zoubek to have finished his college career in 2021 or earlier to not play at least a little professional basketball.

Cross-thread realignment: isn't Marques on the Indonesian National Team and playing in the Asian-Pacific regional tournament -- right now?

Yes, they are preparing for the tournament at home next week where they need to make the quarterfinals to qualify for the World Cup that they are co-hosting next year. The tournament was originally scheduled for last summer, which would have allowed Marques to play in Summer League while also getting to play for Indonesia (which presumably gets him a little extra cash), but rescheduling has had to happen everywhere.

Results from Day 2 in Salt Lake City.

Thunder 87, Grizzlies 71 (box score, highlights)

Chet Holmgren did not yet fulfill his promise to exceed his SLC Summer League record of 6 blocks, but otherwise he did fine with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Josh Giddey had a triple double (14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) -- it's like if a young Russell Westbrook had played for the Thunder!

On the Memphis side, draft picks Jake LaRavia, David Roddy, and Kennedy Chandler did not play, and undrafted Keve Aluma was scoreless in 11 minutes. Kenneth Lofton Jr (listed on the roster as 6'8" and 275 lbs) created an unusual matchup with Holmgren, and he led the Grizzlies with 19 points.

Despite playing in the NBA combine, Lofton was not measured there. Fortunately, we have his anthropometric results and skill tests at the G League Elite Camp, held in May. He was an inch and a half shorter, and 5 pounds heavier.

Back to the Thunder. This Jalen Williams/Jaylin Williams thing is already getting to me. Maybe the announcers too. "One of them is called J-Dub and the other is J-Will." Okay, but which is which? "There's Jaylin with a Y, and Jalen with an L." Go away.

Also, their jersey numbers are 6 (Jaylin) and 8 (Jalen). When I read a credit card number or a phone number without eyeglasses, those are the two digits I have the hardest time differentiating. At this point it's just trolling. If Sam Presti were a Hollywood producer instead of the OKC Thunder's general manager, the first thing he would do is cast Jessica Chastain and Bryce Dallas Howard as the leads in a movie together.

Sixers 86, Jazz 82 (box score, highlights)

A late Jazz run kept it interesting, but the Sixers pulled away in the final minute. Decent play from the starting centers, as Charles Bassey (Sixers) had 17 points and 9 rebounds, while Bruno Caboclo (Jazz) had 16 and 6. So far Summer League hasn't been the foul-fest that awhom111 likes to see, but Caboclo did use 7 of his 10 fouls. The crowd chanted "Tacko! Tacko!" in the 4th quarter, but Tacko Fall did not play. (Or they were chanting for a free taco, but neither of these teams were going to reach 100 points.)

In related Utah news, the Rudy Gobert trade with Minnesota was finalized today, which means that Walker Kessler and Leandro Bolmaro -- both on the Summer League roster for the Timberwolves prior to the trade -- are with the Jazz now. Will they play Thursday in their new home of Salt Lake City, or will they debut Saturday in Las Vegas?

Caboclo is 2 years away from being 2 years away from committing 10 fouls in a Summer League game. Forget about the take rule, the foul rule is still the most important thing in Summer League.

[brevity]

Caboclo is 2 years away from being 2 years away from committing 10 fouls in a Summer League game. Forget about the take rule, the foul rule is still the most important thing in Summer League.

I was soclose to getting to use that joke again. It was near the end of the game and Bruno Caboclo had 6 fouls. I typed "Caboclo was two fouls away from two fouls away from fouling out" but then he picked his damn 7th foul. The line had to go.

Despite being drafted 8 years ago, Caboclo is surprisingly not among the oldest players in Summer League. He's 26. Here are the players currently on Las Vegas rosters who are aged 27 or older:

30 Bryton Hobbs, BOS (born 11/14/1991)
30 Abdul Gaddy, OKC (1/26/1992)
29 Jordan Usher, UTA (8/11/1992)
29 Pierria Henry, WAS (1/20/1993)
29 Leonardo Meindl, PHX (3/20/1993)
28 Gabe York, IND (8/2/1993)
28 Dusty Hannahs, MIL (9/2/1993)
28 Josh Gray, POR (9/9/1993)
28 George King, POR (1/15/1994)
28 Craig Sword, WAS (1/16/1994)
28 Deonte Burton, MIN (1/31/1994)
28 Marcus Georges-Hunt, ATL (3/28/1994)
28 Jo Lual-Acuil Jr., PHX (4/26/1994)
28 Mychal Mulder, MIA (6/12/1994)
27 Tahjere McCall, WAS (8/17/1994)
27 Evans Ganapamo, MIL (8/19/1994)
27 Ish Wainright, PHX (9/12/1994)
27 Kameron Taylor, PHX (10/5/1994)
27 Sindarius Thornwell, CHI (11/15/1994)
27 Xavier Moon, LAC (1/2/1995)
27 Cam Reynolds, LAC (2/7/1995)
27 Elijah Brown, SAC (2/19/1995)
27 Perrion Callandret, CHI (4/8/1995)
27 Aubrey Dawkins, BOS (5/8/1995)

[brevity]

I was joking last night when I wrote "Josh Giddey had a triple double (14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) -- it's like if a young Russell Westbrook played for the Thunder!" But then I see that Chet Holmgren made his debut wearing Kevin Durant's sneakers, and Durant tweeted his praise of Holmgren. I don't know, maybe Giddey/Holmgren will become a new version of Westbrook/Durant. Who's the James Harden? Based on their roster photos, Ty Jerome and Kenrich Williams already have beards...

We finish the appetizers in Salt Lake City and start the main course in Las Vegas tonight. All the Summer League you can consume over the next 11 days. If you would like to see the Las Vegas schedule on a single PDF page, it's here, or click "View Schedule" on this NBA Events site.

The Magic, Thunder, and the Rockets are all in action, so you could see top 3 picks Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, and Jabari Smith Jr play. Add in #5 pick Jaden Ivey, #7 pick Shaedon Sharpe, and maybe #13 pick Jalen Duren (officially traded to Detroit as of Wednesday).

Click on a team name to see its roster. Click on a channel to watch online. All times Eastern.

THURSDAY, JULY 7

Thunder vs. Sixers, 6pm on NBA TV and ESPN3
Grizzlies vs. Jazz, 8pm on NBA TV and ESPN3

Rockets vs. Magic (Paolo Banchero), 10pm on ESPN (Spanish feed on ESPN3)
Trail Blazers vs. Pistons, midnight on ESPN (Spanish feed on ESPN3)

[JasonEvans]

27 Sindarius Thornwell, CHI (11/15/1994)

Too soon...

[Billy Dat]

I'm not on IG (Instagram?) but am certainly interested in Chase Jeter's adventures. Can you share?

He seems to be on a bit of a vision quest of sorts...very into yoga and meditating and rastafarianism. Sounds good to me. Has definitely stepped away from basketball as he continues on this spiritual journey.

[AGDukesky]

I tried to spork brevity but got rejected like a weak Summer League shot near Holmgren

[LasVegas]

Watching Chet get backed down last night by Lofton reminded me of why I question his ceiling in the NBA. Bigger, stronger players will just absolutely abuse him on D. No question about it. Switch him onto Lebron or Zion and it’s an automatic bucket.

[AGDukesky]

Watching Chet get backed down last night by Lofton reminded me of why I question his ceiling in the NBA. Bigger, stronger players will just absolutely abuse him on D. No question about it. Switch him onto Lebron or Zion and it’s an automatic bucket.

Yeah the questions are if his frame can hold enough weight to bang down low or if he is more of Brandon Ingram type with enough quickness to score and defend on the perimeter. I think he has enough skill to stick around a long time in the NBA but am skeptical if he ever becomes a true star.

[scottdude8]

Watching Chet get backed down last night by Lofton reminded me of why I question his ceiling in the NBA. Bigger, stronger players will just absolutely abuse him on D. No question about it. Switch him onto Lebron or Zion and it’s an automatic bucket.

I think Chet's ceiling will be dictated by whether he can either A) Develop the foot speed to be a more perimeter oriented, traditional (albeit oversized) "3", or B) Bulk up to be a more traditional "4". Getting to either will likely take him a couple years at minimum, which is why he's a longer term prospect. Last night (not to mention his college tape) showed that he's a long ways from being able to play the 4 consistently in the NBA, which makes me wonder whether the Thunder might try to develop him towards option A. He'll never have the speed/handle of KD, but could he be a supersized version of him that trades off some speed/agility for extra length? It's going to be an experiment either way.

[UrinalCake]

Watching Chet get backed down last night by Lofton reminded me of why I question his ceiling in the NBA. Bigger, stronger players will just absolutely abuse him on D. No question about it. Switch him onto Lebron or Zion and it’s an automatic bucket.

It wasn't just getting bullied in the post; Chet also allowed the enormous Lofton Jr. to look like Steph Curry hitting a deep three:



In all seriousness though, everybody knew Holmgren's strength would be a huge question mark. In the previous game Kofi Cockburn showed the ability to back him down too, although Holmgren did have a much better game overall. link

[WillJ]

Kenny Lofton, Jr's mother must be a very large person.

[tbyers11]

Kenny Lofton, Jr's mother must be a very large person.

I think I know where you are going with this.

I was thinking similar things until I learned that Kenneth Lofton, Jr., on the Memphis Summer League team is not related to Kenny Lofton the famous Indians/Braves MLB player

[WillJ]

I think I know where you are going with this.

I was thinking similar things until I learned that Kenneth Lofton, Jr., on the Memphis Summer League team is not related to Kenny Lofton the famous Indians/Braves MLB player

Ahhhh...that does clear up some of the mystery. Thanks!
As you likely know, the older Kenny Lofton was quite a good bball player for Arizona before he became an MLB star.