Denver in descent and Bronny in bloom: NBA summer league takeaways

By the time draft night arrived, it was pretty widely understood that the Atlanta Hawks, in possession of the No 1 pick for the first time since 1975, were going to select Zaccharie Risacher, anointing him as the second annual French Beanpole King of the Draft. Risacher, though, is no Victor Wembanyama. And just because the pick was widely predicted doesn’t mean that it was widely agreed upon. Several draft boards (including that of Kevin O’Connor of the Ringer) had Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard, a guard who ended up in Houston with the third overall pick, as their choice for best prospect, and his time in Vegas showcased why they appear to have been correct. Sheppard, while slightly undersized at 6ft 3in, was damned impressive in his minutes in Sin City: a sharpshooter with an extremely high basketball IQ for his age, he looked positively comfy in his first NBA minutes. By the end of the week, execs from the Wizards (who selected Alex Sarr at No 2) and Hawks were quietly doing some damage-control-explaining behind the scenes for passing him over.
One of the stories of the summer so far has been less of a story and more of a question: “What the hell are the Denver Nuggets doing?” Piece by piece, they’ve been passively dismantling their championship roster, losing Bruce Brown in free agency last offseason and doing the same this summer with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, both key pieces in what was a world-beating rotation. That’s to say nothing of the head-scratching decision to bring in the downward-trending Russell Westbrook to replace Reggie Jackson as a backup point guard. A bright spot had been their decision to trade up in this year’s draft for flex-big Daron Holmes II out of Dayton, the heir apparent to the backup five role currently occupied by NBA-elderly DeAndre Jordan, a spot in desperate need of a younger upgrade. Holmes looked extremely promising in the short time he was able to play in Las Vegas, but he tragically tore his achilles tendon in the second half of his first ever outing as an NBA player, and he’s now out for the year. It might be time to panic in the Rockies.
One of the other big stories of the summer has contained, by far, its most insufferable discourse. It seems everyone and their father, as it were, has a strong opinion about the Los Angeles Lakers’ late second-round acquisition (and subsequent guaranteed contract signing) of Bronny James, the eldest son of Lakers forward and arguable-best-player-of-all-time LeBron James. The younger James was a McDonald’s All-American and was talked about as a potential lottery pick after showing signs of excellence in high school, but a harrowing on-court cardiac arrest just prior to his first (and only) year at USC both truncated his season and put a damper on his output, and the skepticism has been loud as to what his NBA outlook could be. To put it bluntly, James Jr had a rough start to his Summer League outing. But the guard made great strides by his last game in Vegas, putting up back-to-back double-digit point games and showcasing his nose for the defensive end of the ball. He is likely headed for extended time in the developmental G-league, but the younger James showed enough signs of promise to silence at least some of his detractors last week.
The aforementioned Alex Sarr, the second overall pick in this year’s NBA draft to the Washington Wizards, learned a lesson that many 7ft Gen-Z hoopers come to find: Not all tall, lanky basketball players are created equal; and not all tall, lanky basketball players are Kevin Durant. Sarr clearly derives inspiration, as many in his generation do, from the two-time NBA finals MVP, but he doesn’t appear to have either the shooting prowess or the force at the rim that has proven so successful for Durant. In fairness, Sarr did show flashes of defensive greatness, which will always be helpful in the NBA, especially at his height. But, offensively, he struggled mightily–to the tune of averaging 5.5 points per game and even going 0-for-15 from the field in one contest. Had the player picked directly after him in the draft, Reed Sheppard, not had such a sensational Vegas outing, Sarr’s disappointing showing might not sting as much for long-suffering Wizards fans. But, alas …
While this year’s draft class was famously underwhelming as far as superstar talent, it certainly appears to have contained its fair share of gems. For one, after experiencing death-by-TJ McConnell in the second round of this year’s playoffs, it appears the New York Knicks might’ve found their own facsimile in Marquette guard Tyler Kolek. Kolek himself doesn’t appreciate the McConnell comparisons, likening himself more to his own team-mate, Jalen Brunson. But we certainly saw flashes of the Indiana guard in Kolek’s game – his quick twitch, craftiness and facilitation skills – and that’s a compliment. And while Minnesota had their highest-profile moment of draft night when they traded up with San Antonio to acquire the rights to draft undersized guard Rob Dillingham, it seems their actual ready-to-contribute draft pick may have come later in the form of Terrence Shannon Jr: He’s big, strong, and already looks to be a great defender. He also happened to have, arguably, the dunk of the tournament.
Every year in Vegas, there are some perfunctory appearances by sophomore stars who have clearly outgrown the exhibition games of Summer League but participate in a game or two as an act of humility and good sportsmanship. This year was no different, as sophomore standouts proved their mettle and showed why they’ve already earned their spots in NBA rotations. This included a few Rookie of the Year finalists in Jaime Jacquez Jr and Brandon Miller. Jacquez Jr appeared in only two contests but averaged 26 points, and Miller competed in just one game in Las Vegas this year but exhibited a clear command of the floor with his 23 points. Last year’s Vegas Summer League MVP, Cam Whitmore, looked athletically head and shoulders above basically all of his competition, and Memphis’ sophomore GG Jackson, along with juniors Jake LaRavia and Scottie Pippen Jr (the latter of which clocked just the sixth triple-double in Vegas Summer League history) all looked extremely comfortable and capable with the Grizzlies on their way to their Summer League final, where Miami ultimately hoisted the trophy in overtime.