NBA Summer League 2022: Previewing Biggest Games on Las Vegas Schedule
The 2022 NBA Summer League got underway over the weekend in San Francisco, where six games took place between Saturday and Tuesday. Then, two Summer League games occurred in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, with two more set for Wednesday and an additional two scheduled for Thursday.
But not every NBA team will be represented at those two sites. Many of the league's franchises don't begin Summer League play until the games that take place in Las Vegas. That's where every team will send a group of players for exhibition games that could help them determine some roster spots ahead of the 2022-23 season.
There will be 75 games that take place in Las Vegas, with play beginning on Thursday and wrapping up on June 17. None of the NBA's biggest stars will be on the rosters, but there will be plenty of young players taking part, including many of the incoming rookies who entered the league via the 2022 NBA draft.
As the Summer League prepares to head to Las Vegas, here's a look at several of the most intriguing matchups that will occur over the next two weeks.
Houston Rockets vs. Orlando Magic, July 7 at 10 p.m. ET
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Did the Orlando Magic make the right choice in drafting Duke forward Paolo Banchero with the No. 1 overall pick last month? It will likely be a while before we get that answer. But Banchero will have an opportunity to silence any critics of the selection when he suits up for the Magic for the first time during the Summer League.
Orlando will play in the first game taking place in Las Vegas when it takes on the Houston Rockets on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN. And Banchero is ready for his first taste of NBA action.
“I’ve kind of always had a target on my back since high school,” Banchero said, per Cody Taylor of Rookie Wire. “Going to Duke, it was the same thing. I was a projected top pick so every guy I went against wanted to get the best of me. It is going to be the same thing in Summer League, and it is going to be the same thing in the NBA. I just got to be ready for it and accept the challenge.”
There will be intrigue on the other side of this Houston-Orlando matchup, too. The Rockets' roster features all three players they acquired in the first round of this year's draft: Auburn forward Jabari Smith Jr., LSU forward Tari Eason and Kentucky guard TyTy Washington Jr. So they'll be making their Houston debuts during the Rockets' Las Vegas Summer League opener.
Smith was one of the players in the mix for the Magic to consider at No. 1, but he fell to the Rockets at No. 3. Now, he'll go head-to-head with Banchero for the first time Thursday night.
Golden State Warriors vs. New York Knicks, July 8 at 8 p.m. ET
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James Wiseman hasn't put on a Golden State Warriors uniform for a game since April 10, 2021. The 7'0" center missed all of the 2021-22 season because of a right knee injury, although he appeared in two games for the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G League.
Golden State played three games over the past four days at the California Classic, the Summer League matchups that took place in San Francisco. Wiseman didn't play in any of those games, but the 21-year-old could suit up for the Warriors in Las Vegas.
According to Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area, Wiseman took part in a 5-on-5 scrimmage with Golden State on Sunday. And he's on track to play in Summer League games at some point in Vegas.
"I think that's the plan," Warriors Summer League coach Seth Cooper said, per Johnson. "I haven't heard anything one way or the other, but I know [Sunday] was a good step and that he looked really good playing."
If Wiseman doesn't play Friday, he could still appear in some of Golden State's later Summer League games in Las Vegas. But there are still other players to keep an eye on from the Warriors' roster, such as forward Jonathan Kuminga and guard Moses Moody, who are both entering their second NBA season.
Golden State and New York will tip-off on Friday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Detroit Pistons, July 14 at 5:30 p.m. ET
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Who is the top team to watch during the Summer League in Las Vegas? It sure seems to be the Detroit Pistons, who are sending a roster filled with a bunch of their talented, young players to take part in the exhibition matchups.
Among the returning players who will suit up for the Pistons are Cade Cunningham (the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft), Killian Hayes, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey. They'll be joined by Jaden Ivey, the rookie guard out of Purdue who was taken with the No. 5 overall pick in last month's draft.
So Detroit will be able to put a lineup out on the court that could closely resemble one that it will utilize during the regular season. Especially if Ivey proves he's ready to make an immediate impact.
"I see myself fitting in well," Ivey said, per Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. "I feel like we’re connected. In the first two days [of practice] I feel like we were all connected as a group, we were talking to each other and building that team chemistry. I think that’s the biggest thing. I love that these guys are ready, they’re so fun to play with."
The Pistons' July 14 matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers (which will tip off at 5:30 p.m. ET on NBA TV) is the fourth game on their schedule, so the team could be jelling by that point. Plus, Detroit could be playing for a spot in the Summer League championship game, because it will likely have fared well up to that point.
There's a chance the Pistons take a big step forward during the 2021-22 season, and the Summer League may showcase how likely that is to happen.
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