NBA Summer League 2012: Winners and Losers from Weekend Action

For every ending, there is a new beginning...

OK, so maybe the NBA Summer League doesn't merit such a melodramatic description, though there are certainly worse ways of conveying the "meaning" of this past weekend. The curtains came down on the Orlando Summer League and lifted on the Las Vegas league on Friday.

And while there's no need to get weepy about any of it, for those hoop-heads who cherish basketball that's both official and meaningless, the thought of summertime basketball nearing its end this coming Sunday is likely concerning.

Though frankly, the approach of the Summer Olympics should help to alleviate that agony.

But before we get too carried away with "poetry," let's have a look back at the best and worst of the weekend.

Winner: Tornike Shengelia

It's only fitting that, at the end of a week filled with defeats and less-than-satisfactory individual performances, the Brooklyn Nets would come out like gangbusters in their NBA Summer League finale.

MarShon Brooks was the most prolific Net—and, in fact, Orlando Summer Leaguer—on Friday, pouring in 34 points on a Kobe Bryant-like 27 shots.

But rather than focus on a guy who's gotten so much attention in recent weeks as a key cog in the failed Dwight Howard trade, let's give a shout-out to an unknown by the name of Tornike Shengelia.

A 6'9", 228-pound forward from Tbilisi, Georgia, Shengelia spent the week showing off an impressive array of skills for a player of his size. In particular, Shengelia's ability to pass and handle the ball, as well as to defend multiple positions, made him one of the more intriguing performers around.

He concluded his first NBA-affiliated stint with 16 points, two rebounds, four steals and three blocks in a 90-77 win for the Nets over the Indiana Pacers. Whether that'll be enough to keep Shengelia stateside remains to be seen, but it's clear that he's got the requisite skills to fill a roster spot in this league at some point in the future.

Loser: Cole Aldrich

It probably won't be long before the Oklahoma City Thunder finally decide to stick a fork in the failed Cole Aldrich Experiment.

The third-year center out of Kansas fit in more with the scrubs, D-Leaguers and overseas imports that stock the summer league than he did with any of his NBA-experienced counterparts.

That trend continued on Friday, when Aldrich notched four points, six rebounds and a block in nearly 16 minutes of play during an 89-75 win over the Utah Jazz. It doesn't exactly speak well of Aldrich's past, present and future that he was essentially dominated by the shorter, similarly-skilled Enes Kanter (15 points, eight rebounds) in the game.

This coming season just so happens to be Aldrich's last before the Thunder can decide whether to keep him around or not. If his play in Orlando is any indication, Aldrich then might not be long for OKC.

Winner: Dominique Jones

Aaaaaaand we're off to Vegas, beginning with Dominique Jones.

The soon-to-be-third-year guard out of South Florida had a bonanza of an afternoon against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, piling up 32 points, eight rebounds and two assists in an 88-77 win for the Dallas Mavericks.

Jones can't expect to have free reign on the court every time like he did against Denver, when he put up 25 shots (and made 12 of them). But for such a prolific summer league debut, it's tough to argue with DoJo's initial results.

Loser: David Harrison

David Harrison has been around the world and back during his pro basketball career, though all the added mileage doesn't seem to have done much for his on-court skills.

The 29-year-old center did well to convert his four shots into eight points and add three blocks to his defensive resume.

But the fact that Harrison—all 7'0" and 250 pounds of him—managed to pull down a mere three rebounds (and notch seven fouls) in 15 minutes doesn't speak well of his ability to stick in the NBA this time around.

As such, it's not difficult to imagine the former Indiana Pacers draftee winding up back in the D-League when all is said and done, assuming he doesn't head back to China instead.

Winner: Damian Lillard

Sunday's swing between the Portland Trail Blazers and the New Orleans Hornets featured a matchup between Damian Lillard and Austin Rivers, two of the top guards from the 2012 NBA draft.

Lillard and the Blazers won in various respects.

There was, of course, the overall scoreboard, which closed with a score of 85-82 in favor of PDX.

Of greater interest, though, was the role that Lillard played in that result. He scored 21 of his 25 points in the second half to lead the Blazers all the way back from a 17-point deficit.

Those privy to picking nits will point to the Weber State product's first half—2-of-10 shooting from the field with no free-throw attempts—as reason for concern.

Then again, to do so would overlook the potential role that jitters played for a small-conference kid playing against significantly more talented competition.

Not to mention the razzle and dazzle he showed off after intermission. Lillard did well to attack the basket from there on out, and he added four rebounds and four assists for good measure.

Loser: Austin Rivers

On the other end of the result was Austin Rivers. Posting 14 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists in a pro debut isn't exactly snub-worthy material, especially for a 19-year-old kid moving from shooting guard to point guard for the first time.

Then again, ignoring a 3-for-13 shooting performance, with four turnovers and six fouls, would be somewhat foolish as well.

Even more foolish, though, would be to condemn Rivers for what amounted to a lackluster first half followed by a solid performance over the final 20 minutes. Doc Rivers' son showed that he can get to the basket against NBA-caliber competition (and some others) while playing on the ball for most of the game.

Still, in his initial battle with a fellow top-10 draftee in Lillard, Rivers got the short end of the stick, if only by default.

Winner: Bradley Beal

Three games in three days didn't do much to faze the young legs of Bradley Beal.

The third overall pick in the 2012 NBA draft looked the part over the weekend, with averages of 18.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game through his first three in Las Vegas.

Beal's shooting numbers (41 percent from the field, 25 percent from three, 75 percent from the line) could use some improvement. More importantly, though, the 19-year-old guard out of Florida had relatively little trouble getting and taking open looks over the weekend.

In time, Beal's confidence at the pro level will grow, and those shots will begin to fall at a rate that'll have Washington Wizards fans smiling from ear to ear.

Loser: Washington Wizards

The Wizards can't be considered the happiest of campers. Their 76-70 win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday was sandwiched between a 20-point loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday and a seven-point shortfall against the D-League Select Team on Sunday.

You read that right—the D-League Select Team, which features such "select" talents as Andre Emmett, Marcus Dove and Mardy Collins.

Good thing these games don't actually count. Otherwise, the Wizards would have some serious 'splainin' to do, as Desi Arnaz would say.

Especially Chris Singleton and Jan Vesely, who picked up eight fouls apiece on Sunday.

Winner: Charlotte Bobcats

Like I said, the results from the NBA Summer League don't actually matter.

But when you're the Charlotte Bobcats and you won just seven times in 66 tries last season, anything that doesn't result in an "L" has to be taken as manna from heaven.

Or whatever it is Bobcats fans have been sustaining themselves with over the last year or so.

Charlotte has won each of its first two games in Las Vegas—121-87 against the Sacramento Kings and 68-64 over the Cleveland Cavaliers—with Kemba Walker, Bismack Biyombo, Byron Mullens and second-round pick Jeff Taylor all performing well so far.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist sparkled in his debut, with 18 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals, but he was held out of Sunday's game with a tweak in his knee.

Loser: Damian Saunders

The "0-Fer of the Weekend" goes to Damian Saunders of the Miami Heat. The 23-year-old swingman out of Duquesne got up six shots in just over 16 minutes of game time during the Heat's 71-59 win over the Toronto Raptors.

Unfortunately for Saunders, none of those six actually went through the hoop. All told, he finished with four rebounds, two fouls and...well, nothing else of note.

As they so never say, "Of whom little is known, even less is expected."

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