It looks as though prospects saved their best performances for the last day of the Orlando Summer League.
Orlando Magic 96 – 87 Detroit Pistons
After sitting out the last few games, Victor Oladipo was back for the Magic, again reinforcing that he was a step above in talent. Oladipo finished with 22 points, five rebounds and four assists. The second-year player managed to get to the free-throw line 10 times. During this week in Orlando, Oladipo showed his handle has improved since last season; he also forced a lot fewer passes, resulting in fewer turnovers. Aaron Gordon handled the ball a lot better and didn’t have a single turnover in the entire game. Gordon does have the ability as a playmaker, but in his previous games his decision-making had been inconsistent. Gordon went 4-8 from the line today, which is actually a minor increase of his percentage from his 42-percent rate in college. Given Gordon’s size and quickness, he will be fouled a lot,so he’ll need to focus on improving that stroke.
Rookie Elfrid Payton really began to show some consistency in his last few outings, showing to be a triple-double threat for the last three games. Payton went for 18 points, eight assists and four rebounds. He finished well at the rim against the Pistons, using his size and length to his advantage. The point guard also had his best day in terms of turnovers, finishing with just two for the day.
I was really bummed to see Peyton Siva get injured, as he was having a terrific summer league and is one of my sleepers to have a breakout year. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope struggled in this game going for just 12 points on 4-13 shooting, but he was showing toughness playing with a sprained ankle. The guys who stood out in this game for the Pistons are two of Stan Van Gundy’s Orlando draft picks Justin Harper and DeAndre Liggins. Harper, a prototypical stretch four, connected on a number of jump shots including one 3, finishing with 16 points and eight rebounds. Liggins is a terrific defender whose offensive game has really advanced over the last few years. Despite having a VERY quiet first half, he ended the game with 20 points, including two 3’s and six free throws. I expect both guys to get an invite to training camp, and Liggins has a real chance to make the roster.
Indiana Pacers 95 – 86 Boston Celtics
I can’t stop giving love to Mike Moser. Moser has shown real potential as a stretch four with the Celtics summer league team, shooting 2-5 from beyond the arc against Indiana. Moser had his best rebounding game of the tournament so far ending up with 10 rebounds. Sure, Kelly Olynyk had a good game, but that is expected of him. Instead, I’m going to talk about two guys who are playing in hopes of triggering Boston’s team options, Chris Johnson and Chris Babb. Both of these guys have struggled in Orlando and could have played themselves out of the NBA and into the D-League. Marcus Smart has struggled with his shot every game, but he didn’t show any hesitation against the Pacers. Smart took 18 shots, connecting on just six of them, but four of those were 3-point attempts. Even though he had a better box score, his shot selection was still pretty poor.
In my last recap, I knocked Donald Sloan, but to his credit he has steadily improved his play over the week and capped the Orlando Summer League with a strong 20-point-10-assist performance. Sloan doesn’t figure to be good enough to crack the Pacers rotation, but by playing on their summer league team he obviously wants to stick around and fight for his place. I have no doubt Sloan will land on an NBA roster somewhere, but is he good enough to be anything but a third-string point guard? I’m not so sure.
Oklahoma City Thunder 103 – 98 Miami Heat
With Jeremy Lamb resting for the final game, the Thunder’s rookie cast stole the show in Orlando. No one has done more to improve his reputation than Mitch McGary during the Orlando Summer League. McGary had another strong outing, finshing with 18 points, five rebounds, two assists and two blocks. McGary had one particularly impressive play where he grabbed the rebound and led the fast break. He then executed a sweet no-look shovel pass to Roberson who finished strong. It’s plays like those that begin to explain why the Thunder were desperate to get him with the No. 21 pick in this year’s draft.
Fellow rookies John Huestis and Semaj Christon also had their best games of the week. Huestis finished with 17 points, four rebounds and three assists, including a game-winning layup after he took Andre Dawkins off the dribble. Christon connected on his first seven shots, leading the team well with 17 points and five assists. So far, Christon has impressed. Charlotte, who is in desperate need for a second- and third-string point guard in free agency may regret trading him for cash considerations.
Shabazz Napier’s struggles continued; he’ll be happy to get out of Orlando. Napier’s poor performances during his first few games appear to have knocked his confidence. He took just four shots, connecting on one of them, but did have an impressive seven assists. Unfortunately, he also coughed up a costly six turnovers. Some point to Michael Carter-Williams’ struggles in this event last year as reason to not be concerned, but I see a couple of differences. First of all, Carter-Williams has fantastic physical gifts to fall back on and also did a very good job finding teammates, registering double-figure assists on multiple occasions.
Undrafted Duke guard Andre Dawkins had a breakout game, scoring 27 points, going 7-12 from 3. I could see Dawkins catching on to an NBA roster in a similar fashion to Troy Daniels with the Houston Rockets last year; elite three-point shooting always has a role in the NBA. Justin Hamilton ended a great personal week with a 20-point effort, going 10-10 from the line. Hamilton has shown he can be a stretch five when needed, but also demonstrated the ability to bang inside today which is just as important.
Houston Rockets 101 – 75 Brooklyn Nets
Nick Johnson. Remember that name. Johnson was one of my second-round sleepers, who I felt had the vision to play the point and the athleticism to guard two-guards. Johnson recorded a triple-double in just 26 minutes of play, finishing with 15 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Keep in mind three of those rebounds were offensive and Johnson is just 6-2, proving how well he uses his athleticism to his advantage. It is early, but Houston may have found the steal of the second round in Johnson. Tarik Black and Jahii Carson both had solid games and look certain to receive a training camp invite somewhere. That said, both look to have slim chances of making a roster.
Considering Corey Jefferson was the last pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, he has had a mighty impressive week. Jefferson scored a team-high 19 points on an efficient 8-12 from the field, added seven rebounds (four offensive) and swatted three shots – a stat line of which an NBA lottery pick would be proud. Jefferson has always had the physical gifts and skill level, but has lacked motor and consistency. Lionel Hollins is the perfect coach for Jefferson to develop under, as he could turn into a solid inside presence for a small Brooklyn team.
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