NBA: Summer League Update Pt. 1
Best Teams: Phoenix Suns (3-0): The Suns haven't been very good since the Steve Nash days when they reached the Western Conference Finals in 2010. Phoenix had the worst record in the league at 21-61 last season which meant they had the inside track at getting the first pick in the NBA Draft. The Suns drafted DeAndre Ayton to pair with Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Jackson. The latter two are playing alongside him in the Summer League. Phoenix began with a 92-85 win over the Dallas Mavericks and Dennis Smith Jr. Their defense was more impressive in the next game as the Suns shut down the Sacramento Kings and only allowed 63 points. In their most recent outing, Phoenix improved to 3-0 with a dominant 71-53 win over the Orlando Magic.
Best Teams: Denver Nuggets (3-0): The Nuggets finished just one game out of the playoffs last year and finished with a 46-36 record. Because they were so close to the postseason, they felt it was worth the risk to take a chance on Michael Porter Jr. in the Draft. Although he isn't playing in the Summer League, it's apparent that the Nuggets have some promising young talent. Monte Morris is putting up 16.3 points per game, to go along with 6.0 assists. Malik Beasley is looking pretty good as well, as he's averaging 14.5 points on 39 percent shooting from the field. Denver, along with the Phoenix Suns and Houston Rockets, are the only 3-0 teams in the league. The Nuggets as a team are scoring at a rate of 80.7 points per night.
Best Teams: Houston Rockets (3-0): The Rockets had the best record in the NBA last year so you wouldn't think they'd be looking for a lot of new talent to come in, but that might be the case. Houston lost two key players this offseason in Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah A Moute. It's never easy to lose two rotation players, including one that was a starter. All of this means that there are spots to fill on the roster and the Summer League guys are looking to impress. Thus far, they've done just that. DeAnthony Melton has exceeded expectations already, as he's scoring 16.3 points per game on 42 percent shooting. Danuel House and R.J. Hunter have looked good too. The Rockets are outscoring their opponents by +7.7 points through three outings.
Top Players: Josh Hart (Lakers): Hart was the 30th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft out of Villanova, where he won a national championship. He was one of the least talked about rookies on the Los Angeles Lakers because he was in the same class with guys like Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma. However, that didn't stop Hart from being impactful during his rookie campaign. He averaged 7.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. And now, he's back and even better. It's often that we see players heading into their sophomore years looking more comfortable and ready for the regular season compared to rookies (because they've been through the entire process once). Hart is averaging an impressive 21.5 points on 47 percent shooting for the Lakers so far.
Top Players: Kevin Knox (Knicks): Knox has been compared to Devin Booker, Tobias Harris, and others because of his ability to stretch the floor and score off the dribble, while being a long wing. In his first couple of games with the New York Knicks, he has looked really good. His 20.5 points per game is fifth among Summer League players behind only John Collins, Malik Monk, Josh Hart, and Trevon Bluiett. Although Knox will have to become more efficient as the season nears (he's currently shooting 37 percent), he's still showed a ton of promise. I especially like how aggressive he has been in the paint. Knox isn't afraid of contact and has shown that. He is also adding 6.5 rebounds per game, which is a good sign of effort.
Top Players: DeAndre Ayton (Suns): Ayton was the No. 1 overall pick in the Draft last month, after being named the Pac-12 Player of the Year. There is always more pressure on the top selection than anyone else because they have to produce or they'll be called a bust in no time. Yeah, it's unfair, but that's just how the game works right now. Fortunately, Ayton has looked the part in his first three games. He started kind of slow, but that's to be expected, and 10 points and eight rebounds in his debut is still pretty solid. Since then, he's only increased his level of productivity. Ayton is averaging 16.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per night, and is extremely efficient as he's shooting at a 71 percent clip. Ayton dropped 17 points and 13 rebounds in his most recent game.
Photo Credit: Sports Live.
