NBA Summer League 2016: Top Takeaways from July 5 in Orlando
Day 4 of the 2016 NBA Orlando Summer League packed intrigue, foreseeable dominance and surprise production into its three-game schedule.
The Miami Heat looked like juggernauts, as they should with two rotation players from last season's roster in the mix. The New York Knicks unearthed an unlikely spark to jolt their previously listless offense. The Los Angeles Clippers finally received strong minutes from all of their high-profile prospects. And the Detroit Pistons squeezed just enough offense out of their top guns to fend off the feisty Indiana Pacers.
This was an overall encouraging effort for this batch of budding ballers, a handful of whom sent the day's biggest message about their present and future.
Pistons Have Their Stretch Big
Detroit first-rounder Henry Ellenson, who stands at 6'10", was billed as a frontcourt floor-spacer entering college. He then shot just 28.8 percent during his lone season at Marquette. Still, NBA draft analysts were optimistic about his shooting.
"A versatile, offensive-minded big man, Ellenson can put the ball in the basket a number of ways and has potential to shoot the ball from deep," wrote Sports Illustrated's Jeremy Woo. "... With his agility and ability to put the ball on the deck and score, he has lots of mismatch potential at the NBA level."
In his second professional outing, he went 2-of-11 from the field and misfired on all six of his long-range looks.
But one number is more important than all of the above—19, as in Ellenson's age until January. He looks like a project because he is one. And he's already having moments that highlight his potential as a modern, multifaceted big man.
His 14 points during Tuesday's 80-76 victory over the Pacers don't jump off the screen, but the manner in which he recorded them sure did. He drilled two triples on four attempts and drew a bigger response for his Dirk Nowitzki-esque one-legged fadeaway:
Ellenson is unlikely to overwhelm opponents with volume in Orlando. Detroit's possessions are understandably going through sophomore Stanley Johnson first, who is feverishly working to improve his three-ball and off-hand dribbling. Lorenzo Brown is a major offensive factor too, as he works to secure the Pistons' No. 3 point guard gig.
So, Ellenson isn't getting the type of touches one might think would be earmarked for the highest-drafted member of the 2016 rookie class in Orlando. That's what magnifies the few flashes he's able to display. He's probably years away from showcasing his full ability, but the pedigree is there for him to blossom as head coach Stan Van Gundy's preferred rangy big man.
Pistons fans should keep the big picture in mind when it comes to Ellenson—and cherish these hints of what it may entail.
Josh Richardson Has Breakout Potential...Again
Josh Richardson doesn't fit the mold of a typical summer leaguer—or a sleeper. While he started last season off the radar as the 40th overall selection, he finished it as a rotation regular with the 48-win Heat. He filled a classic three-and-D role, striping a blistering 46.1 percent outside and using his length (6'6" with a 6'10" wingspan) to harass opposing perimeter players.
Richardson arrived in Orlando with a 2016-17 role secured, and it could be poised to expand given the potential free-agency departure of Tyler Johnson. But his play and poise have him positioned for a sizable sophomore leap.
Richardson was ruthless during the Heat's 84-68 win over the Magic Blue. The combo guard played a controlled floor game, contributing six assists (against only two turnovers), one steal and one block over nearly 28 minutes, and showed advanced comfort on the ball. He effortlessly led the way with 22 points, going 6-of-9 overall, 3-of-4 from outside and 7-of-8 at the free-throw line.
Considering Richardson has now delivered two dominant summer-league outings in as many chances—he had 17 points on 50 percent shooting and four assists during his debut on Saturday—he looks like he shouldn't be here. But despite what the numbers say, he still has skills he hopes to sharpen.
"A lot of ball-handling, trying to figure out when I get pressured where to go and what to do," Richardson told NBA TV after the game. "Running my team like an actual point guard, instead of just a guy that's kind of playing point guard, being forced to play point guard. Just try to make everything a little bit smoother."
Few NBA stocks experienced more growth over last season than Richardson's. Take the trust he's showing in his talents and his efforts to expand them, and he could engineer a similar spike during his sophomore campaign.
Clippers Youth Delivers Needed Hope
The Clippers arrived in Orlando with reasons to be confident. On paper, their roster read like a possible summer-league powerhouse—including a sophomore with a smattering of NBA experience and three players selected among the top 40 picks in the most recent draft.
But the Clippers carried an 0-2 record into Tuesday and then promptly sank to new lows. They dropped a 92-84 defeat to the Knicks, who had lost their first two games by an average of 29 points.
Yet the day still feels somewhat victorious for L.A.
With glaring needs for youth, athleticism and depth, the Clippers must be encouraged by the collective effort from their youngsters. Rookie bigs Brice Johnson (25th pick) and Diamond Stone (40th) combined for 43 points on 31 shots and 14 rebounds, with each player displaying fluid athleticism out in transition and above the rim.
Point guard David Michineau (39th) tallied 16 points and a game-high seven assists. Branden Dawson, the 56th pick in 2015, continued his solid summer run, snatching seven rebounds, dropping a pair of clever dimes and calmly sticking a pull-up jumper.
The Clippers needed to see this. The opponent wasn't great and the outcome wasn't desired, but the experience was necessary. It's been a rocky start to this summer session, particularly for the high-profile freshmen. Anything they can take from this game is a win for a team that would love to fill roster and/or rotation spots with young, cheap talent.
Briante Weber Is Rotation-Bound
Technically, Briante Weber holds only a nonguaranteed contract for next season. But his roster spot has felt increasingly safe of late, given Miami's need for youth (zero draft picks this summer) and depth (especially if the Heat don't match Tyler Johnson's $50 million offer sheet from the Brooklyn Nets, as The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski reported).
That's why Weber's Orlando run feels less like a roster audition and more like a tryout for head coach Erik Spoelstra's rotation. Based on his performance through three games, Weber is leaving that door open.
"He's come in, and he's fit in perfectly," Richardson said of Weber on NBA TV. "We haven't missed a beat."
Weber looks like a Heat player—long, instinctive and relentless defensively. He's not a gambler, yet he's still sitting on a three-game total of 13 steals. Weber is in a low-maintenance scoring role with Richardson and Justise Winslow around, yet he keeps jumping out from the film and the box score. Snaring 10 rebounds from the point guard spot, as he did Tuesday, will have that effect.
Ditto for kick-starting a break with a steal and finishing it by crushing an off-the-glass alley-oop.
Weber doesn't have the highest ceiling since he's never been a big threat beyond the arc. However, he does have plug-and-play potential right now, which could lead to regular minutes with Miami this season.
Chasson Randle Doesn't Waste Opportunities
As New York's offense malfunctioned over its first two games in Orlando, Chasson Randle watched helplessly from the sideline. The former Stanford star didn't see the floor during either outing, which the Knicks finished with paltry point totals of 49 and 48, respectively.
Randle started New York's third game on the bench but finished it under the spotlight. He seemed to provide a transformational touch as soon as he graced the court. The Knicks nearly matched the output from their first two contests combined with 92 points, and Randle's fingerprints were on almost all of them.
He paced all players with 24 points and registered a game-high plus-24. He went a fiery 6-of-9 from deep—all other Knicks were 2-of-11—and led the team with six steals and five assists.
His stat line, which also featured five boards and a block, hinted at possible growth. The 23-year-old has been a bit of a scoring/shooting specialist, and while he's fared well in those roles—he averaged 12.8 points and shot 42.4 percent from the outside in the Czech Republic last season—he's needed better showings as a distributor and defender.
Randle will always be a sniper first, which is surely what caught the Knicks' eye. Even with their offseason overhaul, they need more long-range sniping and perimeter scoring, particularly in new head coach Jeff Hornacek's uptempo system. But if Randle wants any shot at an NBA job, he can't be pegged as a one-trick player.
Seizing Tuesday's opportunity should help change that perception.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
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