NBA Summer League 2023: Hot Takes About Top Players from Day 7 Las Vegas Results

A number of first-round picks took advantage of their opportunities to make an impression at Summer League play with notable performances during Thursday's action.

One of them even hit a game-winner in the final seconds.

Here is a look at some of the top performances from Thursday in Las Vegas.

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Kobe Bufkin Wins it for the Hawks

If the Atlanta Hawks' 99-98 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers was any indication, Kobe Bufkin is going to be perfectly comfortable in clutch situations during his NBA career.

Atlanta trailed by one in crunch time and turned to the No. 15 overall pick of the 2023 NBA draft. Instead of settling for a contested jumper, he attacked the lane while going to his left and hit a difficult shot to put his team ahead for good with 12 seconds remaining.

He finished with 14 points and seven assists while showing the ability to score off the bounce and facilitate for others when needed.

The Michigan product also drew plenty of love from social media:

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Steal of the Draft Sets Steals Record

Amen Thompson didn't play for the Houston Rockets during Thursday's game, but they still had another first-round pick to steal the show.

Literally.

Cam Whitmore stuffed the stat sheet with 26 points, five rebounds and a stunning eight steals during Houston's commanding 118-67 victory over the Golden State Warriors. He hit from the outside with three made three-pointers, overwhelmed Golden State defenders in the lane and stole seemingly everything in sight on the defensive side.

In fact, he tied the Summer League record for steals in a game, which was fitting since many saw him as the steal of the draft at No. 20 overall.

NBA Twitter had plenty of praise for him after the latest showing:

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James Bouknight Shines in Brandon Miller's Absence

Brandon Miller was the main attraction for the Charlotte Hornets at Summer League considering he was the No. 2 overall pick of the NBA draft, but he was sidelined for Thursday's 89-83 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.

That meant James Bouknight had the chance to shine.

The UConn product may be overshadowed by some of the newer faces since he was a first-round pick in 2021 and hasn't been anything more than a role player to this point of his career, but he was dominant against the Pelicans.

He finished with 28 points and seven rebounds while shooting 11-of-21 from the field and 4-of-9 from deep.

Plenty of viewers were impressed:

Bouknight might not be in line for anything more than a secondary role again in 2023-24, but he at least flashed some of his potential when given a chance to be a primary option on Thursday.