NBA's Summer League: The Good and Bad

Sean Deveney - SportingNews.com

Ah, summer league basketball, where lottery picks mingle with long-shot undrafted players, where playbooks are mangled by first-time NBAers, where the players can't foul out (which is good, because the refs are often clueless). Summer league games are, generally, an ugly scrum. But amid the ugliness, we can learn a few things about the NBA's next generation.

"I learned a lot," Warriors guard Stephen Curry told SportingNews.com. "Everybody is just learning, but it gives you the chance to take the things they work on in practice and put them into game situations."

Curry shot just 32.5 percent in summer league -- which wrapped up on Sunday -- though scouts were impressed by his shooting form and leadership. It was two of Curry's teammates, though, who registered the biggest impressions during the summer session. Let's break down what went on in Las Vegas over the 10 days of summer league.

The good

The Warriors' Anthonys. Anthony Randolph set a record with 42 points in a game, later topped by Anthony Morrow's 47 points. The pair led the summer league in scoring, with Randolph posting 26.8 points per game and Morrow putting up 24.7. Morrow is a pure shooter and led the league in 3-point shooting last year as a rookie (46.7 percent). The sky might be the limit for Randolph, though, who is 6-10, can handle the ball, rebound and score, and just turned 20. One West scout said of Randolph, "He has a chance to be a top-15 player."

Blake Griffin, from the field. Griffin was as good as advertised in summer league, notching averages of 19.0 points, 10.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists. He shot 50 percent from the field and pretty much left no doubt about his worthiness as the No. 1 pick or his spot in the Clippers' starting lineup.

The I'm-not-Ricky-Rubios. The Kings were criticized for taking Tyreke Evans over Rubio with the No. 4 pick, but Evans made his mark, averaging 19.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists. Scouts weren't convinced that Evans is a point guard, but he did show that he's got value as an NBA player. The Timberwolves, too, got some Rubio-related criticism when they selected both Rubio and Jonny Flynn with the No. 5 and No. 6 picks. Rubio, of course, is still in Spain, but the Wolves were pleased with Flynn's toughness and numbers -- 15.0 points and 7.4 assists.

The Mavs' steal. The Mavericks surprised some by choosing Roddy Beaubois with the No. 25 pick, but before suffering a bruised knee, Beaubois showed good shooting range and jaw-dropping athleticism. He needs some polish, but he's a keeper.

Chris Paul's new best friend. The Hornets haven't really had a backup for Paul over the course of his career, but it appears they filled that hole with Darren Collison, an ideal backup because he is smart, mature and isn't prone to mistakes. Collison isn't much of a shooter, but he showed that he is quick and adept at running a team.

The Bucks' new guards. Second-rounder Jodie Meeks made his mark at Kentucky as a scorer, and he shot well from NBA range in his five summer games -- he averaged 19.0 points on 55.7 percent shooting. That level of accuracy helped teammate Brandon Jennings, who showed a pass-first knack by leading the summer league with 8.2 assists.

The Rockets' big man. Yao Ming is out, which could mean an opportunity for Joey Dorsey, who pretty much squandered all of his rookie season last year. But Dorsey showed himself to be a presence in the paint in summer league, averaging 14.8 rebounds and 2.6 blocks.

The not-so-good

Blake Griffin, from the free-throw line. He needs work. As good as he was in every other facet, he shot just 45.9 percent on his free throws.

The man in the middle. Hasheem Thabeet was not expected to dominate offensively, and the fact that he struggled to get comfortable with the ball was no surprise. But the fact that he was such a nonfactor on the defensive end must be worrying the Grizz brass. Thabeet was whistled for 26 fouls while blocking just four shots.

The Sun that did not rise. Given their youth movement and their still-continuing search for depth, Phoenix is hoping that Earl Clark can be a solid rotation player for them from Day 1. It wasn't a good start. Clark was tentative and shot just 37.8 percent.

From Israel, with much work to do. Omri Casspi will most likely be the first Israeli player in the NBA, but some of the knocks against him before the Kings drafted him surfaced in summer league. Scouts are worried about Casspi's ability to bulk up enough to handle the NBA, and about his toughness. He shot just 29.5 percent in Las Vegas.

The project. It was well-known before the draft that any team selecting B.J. Mullens would have to be patient. After seeing him in summer league, though, that might have to be upgraded to very patient. Mullens averaged just 5.8 points and 2.6 rebounds, shooting 39.4 percent.

Your team will regret passing on …

Chase Budinger, Rockets. There didn't seem to be much logic to Budinger's draft-night slip into the second round, and he was solid all-around in his summer stint. He averaged 17.8 points in just 22.2 minutes, shooting 68.1 percent from the field and 72.7 from the 3-point line.

Marcus Thornton, Hornets. He was limited to three games, but Thornton averaged 20.7 points and looks to be a reliable bench scorer for the Hornets, who grabbed him in the second round.

DeJuan Blair, Spurs. Concerns about Blair's knees forced him to slide into the second round, but he is likely to contribute for the Spurs right away. What he lacks in height he makes up for in thickness and toughness. He posted 16.3 points and 8.7 rebounds in three games.

Yeah, he's still alive …

Adam Morrison. He played pretty well for the Lakers summer team.

Marcus Williams. Playing for Memphis, he tied Brandon Jennings for the Las Vegas league lead in assists at 8.2 per game.

Nikoloz Tskitishvili. He was the most prominent among the international busts the Knicks trotted out (Yaroslav Korolev and Mouhamed Sene were the others), and Skita did not play badly -- 12.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 42.9 percent 3-point shooting.

Luke Jackson. Three words sum up the summer performance of the former No. 10 pick: Thirty percent shooting.

Smush Parker. He popped up with the Raptors, but averaging 8.0 points on 36.4 percent shooting isn't likely to get him a contract..

Before you get too excited …

Leading scorer, Las Vegas summer league 2008: Jerryd Bayless, 29.8 points per game.
Jerryd Bayless 2008-09 scoring average: 4.3 points.

Second leading scorer, Las Vegas summer league 2008: Donte Greene, 22.6 points.
Donte Greene 2008-09 scoring average: 3.8 points.

Third leading scorer, Las Vegas summer league 2008: Quincy Douby, 22.3 points.
Quincy Douby 2008-09 scoring average: 4.3 points.

Fourth leading scorer, Las Vegas summer league 2008: Alando Tucker, 21.6 points.
Alando Tucker 2008-09 scoring average: 4.6 points.

Sean Deveney is a staff writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at sdeveney@sportingnews.com.

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