NBA: Summer League Awards

The 2017 NBA Summer League was just as thrilling as we'd hoped it would be, and we got to see three separate teams take home championships, as well as watch the best young stars step onto the court for their first ever NBA game. Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball, Jayson Tatum, Josh Jackson, and De'Aaron Fox were the top-5 picks in the latest NBA Draft, and they all played in the Las Vegas Summer League, while other rookies like Luke Kennard and Bam Adebayo starred in the Orland Summer League. Donovan Mitchell on the other hand, the Utah Jazz's selection, played in the Utah Summer League. With all of these players, and many more, we had a ton of standout athletes, and I will be giving my NBA Summer League Awards, including MVP.

Los Angeles (6-2) won the Las Vegas Summer League over the Portland Trailblazers, led by Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, and Vander Blue. Ball averaged 16.4 points, 9.3 assists, and 7.7 rebounds per game, while Kuzma and Blue combined to average 36.9 points per game. Dallas (5-0) beat the Detroit Pistons in overtime in the Orlando Summer League title game, and even though rookie Dennis Smith Jr. was out with an injury, the Mavericks' backcourt played extremely well, including Anthony "Cat" Barber's 9.75 points per game. Utah (3-0) won the Utah Summer League, after defeating the San Antonio Spurs, Philadelphia 76ers, and Boston Celtics on three straight nights. The duo of Dante Exum and Donovan Mitchell combined for more than 25.0 points per game.

Ball only played in six out of his teams eight games in Las Vegas, due to a minor injury, but he totaled two triple-doubles, and a league-high 9.3 assists per game. When healthy, Ball was the best player on the court. Even though he struggled in his debut, going 2-15 from the field for five points, he recovered nicely from there on out. I've been critical of Ball in the past because I know how high expectations are for him, but so far, he's done an incredible job of playing his game to the best of his ability, and hopefully that translates to the regular season. In Orlando, Johnson was simply dominant, even though his Oklahoma City team went just 2-3. Johnson, the former-Kentucky center, impressed with 16.75 points per game, and was a monster on the boards.

It's going to be hard for him to find a spot in the NBA because of how fast paced the game is and it doesn't seem like he can keep up, but he'll continue to be serviceable in the G-League. As for Utah, Mitchell was electric, averaging 13.5 points per game, and helping the Jazz to a perfect 3-0 record. He had the fans in Utah already forgetting that Gordon Hayward left the Jazz for the Boston Celtics, just a couple of weeks ago. Mitchell will see a ton of playing time as a rookie because of Utah's lack of depth. Ball has already been mentioned a couple of times, so I'm going to keep this short, but the the former UCLA-guard was just as spectacular as advertised. His dad, LaVar Ball, who has been outspoken for much of the year, guaranteed the Los Angeles Lakers will make the 2017-18 playoffs, and that remains the be seen, but for now, his son's career is off to a great start.

Kennard was no slouch either, for the Detroit Pistons, scoring a team-high 19.75 points and dishing out 2.5 assists per game. It wasn't enough to earn the Pistons a title, as they came up two points short in the championship game, but he hit several clutch shots in a couple of short weeks for the Pistons. And with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on his way out, Kennard is going to see an increase in minutes. Mitchell, like Ball, was touched on earlier, but the thing that impressed me the most about Mitchell's game, was just how tenacious he was on the defensive end, and because of that, he'll fit in perfectly with the Utah Jazz, who were one of the leagues top defensive squads last year.

Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated.