NBA Summer League 2016: Top Takeaways from July 15 in Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS — Friday was Getaway Day at NBA Summer League. For pretty much everyone affiliated with the 16 teams that participated, the end couldn’t come soon enough.
But before the curtain fell on those out of the running for the tournament title, this year’s brightest young stars put on one last show for their fans in Las Vegas.
Ben Simmons returned from a two-game hiatus, which Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas ripped him for on national TV, to stuff the stat sheet and lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 74-66 win over the Miami Heat. 2016's No. 1 pick finished his summer slog with 15 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in more than 31 minutes.
“He really wanted to play,” Sixers summer league coach Gene Burrows said. “If it was up to him, he would’ve played the whole game, but I had to take him out. He has great energy. He’s a basketball player that wants to be on the floor. He wants to win. He wants to make his teammates better. So it’s really hard sometimes to pull him out of the game because he’s so into it, which you’ll love that in a young player.”
Brandon Ingram, this year’s No. 2 pick, took a similar tack during the Los Angeles Lakers’ 92-88 loss to the Utah Jazz.
With D’Angelo Russell and Larry Nance Jr. in street clothes, the Lakers turned to Ingram as the focal point of their offense. The Duke product delivered, scoring 22 points on a smorgasbord of jump shots, post-ups, spin moves and finishes at the rim.
“We wanted to keep him aggressive, get him the ball on the block, get it to him at the elbows, areas where we felt like he was comfortable,” Lakers summer league coach Theo Robertson said. “He was able to knock some shots down and I thought we were also pleased with his ability to play-make down there.”
Ingram did his part to get his teammates involved, dishing out four assists, including a pair to fellow rookie Ivica Zubac (16 points, 11 rebounds, six blocks). On L.A.’s last possession, Ingram sought out second-year wing Anthony Brown (15 points), who caught nothing but air from beyond the arc.
This isn’t the end of Ingram’s Vegas experience, though. He’ll be back on the court in Sin City come Monday as a member of Team USA’s Select squad. Competing with and against America’s best, under the watchful eye of his college coach (Mike Krzyzewski), figures to be as much of an education for the 18-year-old as anything he experienced in summer league.
“Just to learn from the top players in this league,” Ingram said. “I think that’s very important for me, just coming into this league and just trying to adjust to the physicality and the pace of this game.”
Simmons, meanwhile, will take the next few weeks before he lands in Philadelphia. The 19-year-old Australian won’t be partaking in the Boomers’ preparations for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Four years from now, Simmons and Ingram could be preparing for their own star turns on the international stage at the Tokyo Games. This year, though, surviving the July heat with some growth in their games will count as progress enough for the most promising prospects in the class.
Murray Makes Spurs Look Smart...Per Usual
The San Antonio Spurs have both a habit and a history of unearthing gems well outside the league’s draft lottery. In Dejounte Murray, they may have found yet another.
With Kyle Anderson and Jonathon Simmons both sitting out, 2016's No. 29 pick out of Washington took control down the stretch of a 90-86 overtime win against the Sacramento Kings at Cox Pavilion. Murray hit three shots in the lane during a back-and-forth final two minutes of the fourth quarter, then assisted on both of San Antonio’s buckets in the extra period.
“It’s nice to see out of a kid like this,” Spurs summer league coach Becky Hammon said. “He’s not scared of the moment. We know he’s got some moxie. He’s a tough kid.”
Murray finished with game-highs in points (20), assists (nine) and steals (four), but by Hammon’s count, “he could’ve easily had 14, 15 assists today.”
It will be some time before Murray gets this kind of opportunity to control a game, especially at the NBA level. With Tony Parker and Patty Mills manning the point in the Alamo City, Murray will have to wait a while before he can realistically contemplate taking over at the AT&T Center.
Eventually, though, Murray might get the call, just like so many young Spurs before him have. Whenever that is, the 19-year-old Seattle native could be ready to answer.
“That’s what we do in San Antonio,” Hammon said. “We’re sitting people, the next guy steps up. We just do that on down the line.”
Next Phase Starts Now for Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Brown’s whirlwind summer—which began at the draft in New York and wound through Utah and Nevada—may have ended with the Boston Celtics’ 80-75 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, but the work has only just begun.
“No rest at all. I can rest when I die,” Brown said. “It’s all about getting better right now.”
Brown showed plenty of improvement during his time in Las Vegas. He missed more than his fair share of shots at the rim, but he picked up his accuracy once he realized, “I could get to the basket any time I want. Nobody’s up that high. It’s a matter of just finishing.”
He had no trouble with that on a baseline drive during the third quarter against Portland.
Brown will have to brush up on his jumper before training camp in October too. He went 1-of-7 from deep, after hitting just 4-of-15 through his first five games between Boston’s two summer league stops. There’s room for growth at the free-throw line as well, but Brown got there often enough—61 times during six games, to be exact—and had the ball in his hands enough to set himself apart from the competition, particularly on Boston’s roster.
“You’re our guy,” Celtics summer league coach Jamie Young told Brown earlier in the week. “We’re getting you the ball, and it’s your job to score.”
Brown won’t have that much responsibility on his shoulders in Boston with Isaiah Thomas and Al Horford around. But if he can use his bulk to bully his way to the bucket, he could have a real impact on the Celtics’ fortunes as a rookie.
No Yield for Hield
Buddy Hield learned a lot during his first go-round at NBA summer league with the New Orleans Pelicans.
“Don’t watch TV,” Hield said after the Pelicans’ 88-76 loss to the D-League Select squad at the Thomas & Mack Center. “And when you watch TV, don’t think the NBA game is easy. When you get out there, it’s different. The pace is fast, so don’t let TV fool you.”
Hield learned that the hard way. The No. 6 pick out of Oklahoma wound up shooting 32.7 percent from the field and 22.9 percent from three after a 5-of-18 performance during New Orleans’ summer finale. For Hield, though, his struggles could be just the systemic shock he needs to get in gear for the NBA.
“Even when I go to the Bahamas, I’m going to wake up for early mornings to get after it because I need to get better,” Hield said. “I thought I didn’t have a great summer league, so when I go to the season, work my butt off and be the best I can be each and every day.”
Playing alongside All-Stars like Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday should open up easier shots for Hield than the ones he saw in Sin City. As the clear No. 1 threat on that roster, he faced tight coverage from defenders night in and night out.
Still, it won’t hurt Hield’s chances of success to resharpen the same jump shot that got him into the lottery to begin with.
“I’m not worrying about this,” he said. “It’s a learning curve for me. That’s what you come to summer league for, to learn.”
All quotes were obtained firsthand.
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