UPDATE: ADAM PARADA REPLACED STEVEN HILL ON THE SUMMER LEAGUE ROSTER
– Corey Brewer saw his first game action since he tore his ACL in a game against Denver last November and played 18 minutes. He was much better in the second half than his brief six first-half minutes, shooting the ball with some range and flair after halftime. He finished 4-for-11 (6 for 6 from the line) and had 14 points, five rebounds, an assist and a turnover in 18 minutes.
– Jonny Flynn looked quick, strong, alternately decisive and out of control and careless in his pro debut, with an 11-point (3-for-11 from the field), seven assist, seven turnover, 29 minute game. Played both on and off the ball. Let’s give him another summer-league game before we write off his career…
– Wayne Ellington, probably the only pure shooter on the team now that Mike Miller and Randy Foye both are gone, went 2 for 12.
“Flynn has a very strong presence on the court without being ostentatious about it,” Thorpe wrote. “I love that.”
Thorpe, a graduate of Brewer’s former school, the University of Florida, called Brewer “a horrible disappointment right now.”
* Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor was on hand to watch his summer league team lose to the Rockets 79-65. Some execs in the stands were disappointed with first-round pick Jonny Flinn’s performance. “Played small,” said one.
As for Flynn, he looked in command at times, and at others he looked just as lost as several rookies have this week in their respective debuts.
The Syracuse sparkplug finished with 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting, 7 assists and 7 turnovers.
Flynn appears cursed by the number 7 so far in Vegas, as he was spotted for a short while last night at the craps tables at the Hard Rock.
“It felt good,” said Brewer. “I haven’t played basketball since I got here. It was my first time playing five-on-five besides the little three or four practices we had.”
For Brewer, his mission really isn’t to try and come out and dominate the Vegas Summer League. Instead, he’s just trying to get his feet back underneath him after months of being forced to work on the certain aspects of his game the rehabilitation process allowed.
“Right now I’m just worried about my conditioning and getting back to playing basketball because I haven’t played any basketball,” Brewer explained. “I’ve been working on shooting my jumpers and working on my ball-handling skills since I’ve been hurt.”
The Timberwolves draft picks showed some signs in the squad’s first run in SL. Ellington shot miserably (4 pts, 2-12), however he did hit the glass, adding a couple of steals and 8 boards. Johnny Flynn showed his outside shot, but struggled shooting (3-10). He’s got the ability to penetrate, and find teammates, however will need to reduce his turnovers (7 ast with 7 to).
He did miss two free throws, though, and had only one rebound. He picked up four fouls and had four turnovers on a team also featuring familiar faces in former Syracuse guard Jonny Flynn and former Orange forward Paul Harris.
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