Category: NBA

After years and years of mundane basketball, Jazz fans finally had something to be anticipating. A #1 vs. #2 pick matchup that headlined the NBA. Of course, our own Jazzlings were on the back-end of this event, but this is nothing to hold your head over. Utah is back, and they’re getting the attention they rightfully deserve.

Coming into Las Vegas, Peterson took the world by storm when he played his first two heaters in front of a familiar crowd at Salt Lake City. Even if it was just Summer League, Peterson’s skill set was obviously the most translatable at the NBA level. Not even Cooper Flagg or Wembanyama stepped into the league being this polished offensively. But after a flight to Nevada two nights later, Peterson just didn’t have the same pzazz that he did when Jazz fans were cheering for him back in the Beehive State.

Jamir Watkins had his own fill of Summer League action. Of course, he would have regularly fouled out in the first quarter if this were a standard regular-season game, but Summer League rules allowed Watkins to bypass this and record an additional three fouls his way; one more foul left to spare. The byproduct of this was Darryn Peterson’s own low nine fouls and eight turnovers — Jusuf Nurkic will have a word with pesky guards about that type of defense in October. Wizards stole the crown, as well as the buzzing media that have now deemed Dybantsa a league of his own.

But Peterson’s struggles in his Las Vegas debut were completely blown out of proportion. Social media was filled with settled debates that had already decided Dybantsa was the better prospect. This isn’t to say Peterson should ignore these mistakes; he still needs to improve on his passing angles and looked physically overwhelmed. How much of those struggles are due to the extra physicality that was allowed in Summer League remains up for debate. The fans had already turned off their televisions by the time Peterson started to heat up.

another 20-piece for the rook on his first night in Vegas 🫡#TakeNotepic.twitter.com/JRvw1q16iQ

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) July 10, 2026

Another aspect that was underestimated was Utah missing their rookie standout Ace Bailey, who had been dealing with back spasms that have now kept him out of multiple games spanning across the hoops in July. The Jazz, without a doubt, missed his elite shot-making and defensive versatility on the floor against Dybantsa. He remains questionable coming into tonight.

The 92-88 loss in Las Vegas has likely already halted Utah’s chances of winning a Summer League Championship, barring a miraculous run, meaning the priority has now shifted to scouting for Exhibit-10 or training camp deals. Darryn Peterson and third-year Cody will likely play a game or two more, then it’s time to hand over the keys to Tamar Bates and Jaxon Kohler.

Never mind the buzz, nor the competition. Darryn Peterson now has a chance to let off some steam against the newly built LA Clippers, currently still employing Kawhi Leonard per NBA policy, after LA circumvented the cap back in 2022 that now prevents him from being traded up North.

He’s not one of the flashy headliners of the draft like AJ, Darryn, Cam or even Caleb Wilson, but babyface Keaton Wagler will have the ball in his hands as much as the Jazz hand it to Peterson. His first game against the Kings was a blunder — he only managed to rack up 7 points, 2 rebounds and an assist on 14.3% from the field. He was offensively outplayed in every aspect by 7th pick Darius Acuff. We dare not speak on anyone’s defense from that Thursday night.

Their 50th pick from last season, Kobe Sanders, had recently re-upped with them on a four-year $11.2M deal. Baba Miller was another name that LA added at 36th overall. Cam Christie is starting to contract Cody-syndrome; his older brother Max has proved to be a reliable perimeter shooter in the NBA, while Cam himself logged few minutes in his first two seasons. Now he’ll likely have a chance to anchor the Clippers’ 3-point spacing. LAC may still be a little too old for anyone’s liking, but they still have something materialised in their youth, moving on (hopefully) from the Kawhi era.

For Utah, they’re ready to let off some heavy hits after a frustrating opener. Can Darryn Peterson bring back the efficient hoops from Salt Lake City? Is Ace Bailey going to make an appearance? Can any of the other players earn themselves a training camp deal with a showout performance? For the love of all that is holy can we stop using Cody Williams as a primary option? All these questions may have an answer this Sunday night.

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How to Watch the Las Vegas Summer League?

Who: Utah Jazz vs Los Angeles Clippers

When: Sunday, July 12, 2026 | 8:00 MT

Where: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, NV

Former Blue Devil Maliq Brown was in action Saturday night for the San Antonio Spurs in Summer League play, and the Spurs gave him 24 minutes, and he produced: Brown got 8 points and 8 rebounds, 4 of them offensive, and also had 2 steals and 1 block. Clearly, he’s making an impression.

Also making an impression: on Friday night, Cameron Boozer squared off against former UNC star Caleb Wilson, scoring 23 points (7-12/1-1), and pulling down 6 rebounds, while passing out 4 assists.

Wilson had a great game as well, with 35 points (12-21/7-11), and 5 rebounds.

However, Boozer stripped Wilson in the open court and took the ball in for a dunk, and even better, got the last laugh, as Memphis won, 97-96.

Also making a serious impression: on Friday, Trevor Keels burned Milwaukee for 14 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals, and on Saturday, vs. Orlando, he exploded for 32 points (12-19/6-10), including 12 points in the fourth quarter alone.

• Spurs fans are getting the full Maliq Brown experience in Summer League already
• ‘He has some instincts’: Why Maliq Brown’s defense makes him great fit for Spurs
• Maliq Brown rises up and throws it down
• Trevor Keels goes off for game-high 32 points
• Trevor Keels Went OFF With 32 PTS In Vegas Summer League 
• Four Observations from Bulls’ Caleb Wilson and Grizzlies’ Cameron Boozer’s Las Vegas Summer League Battle
• Grizzlies’ Cedric Coward is in awe of Cam Boozer: ‘I can’t believe he’s 18’
• Cameron Boozer with the massive swat at the rim
• Cedric Coward admits he is glad that Cameron Boozer will be his teammate for the future
• Memphis Grizzlies Win Epic Caleb Wilson vs. Cameron Boozer Battle in Summer League
• Starting 5: Caleb Wilson sets record, Cameron Boozer gets win
• Boozer, Coward shine as Grizzlies edge Bulls in Summer League
• Grizzlies beat Bulls as Cam Boozer takes down college rival Caleb Wilson

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Who: Phoenix Suns (1-0) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (1-1)

When: 12:00 pm Arizona Time

Where: Cox Pavilion, Las Vegas, Nevada

Watch: Arizona Family Sports, ESPN2

Listen: KMVP 98.7

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The Phoenix Suns showcased their elite level of size and athleticism (for Summer League) against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night in a dramatic come-from-behind victory. There was the predictable summer league slop in the first half with both teams struggling to get any type of rhythm on offense, but the second half looked a little more like NBA-style basketball. The three young franchise building blocks all performed well, which should be exciting for Suns fans, because Khaman Maluach, Rasheer Fleming, and Koa Peat need to develop for the long-term health of the organization.

Maluach, Fleming, and Peat also showed their flaws. Maluach committed seven turnovers, Fleming was 0-for-4 from 3 and passed up multiple wide-open looks, and Peat didn’t take a 3-point shot, along with his shot mechanics looking questionable at best. This trio is extremely talented, but also flawed, and summer league is the perfect place to improve upon these flaws.

What was most exciting about watching this trio was how well they played defensively and how dominant the interior defense was. The second-half defense was the catalyst for the Suns coming back from down 16 and ultimately leading by as many as 10 points in the second half. All three players blocked shots, forced turnovers, and ultimately suffocated the Trail Blazers offense. How this trio improves on offense collectively is the biggest storyline to watch for the rest of summer league.

Probable Starters

Suns

• Khaman Maluach
• Koa Peat
• Rasheer Fleming
• Koby Brea
• Darius Brown II

Pelicans

• Hunter Dickinson
• Jalon Moore
• Micah Peavy
• Kobe Bufkin
• Markquis Nowell

Injury Report

Suns

• Nothing reported

Pelcians

• Nothing reported

What to Watch For

The Suns will not face any high-level prospects from the Pelicans, as both Jeremiah Fears and Derek Queen are not playing in summer league. Instead, it will be against a group of college All-Stars with Hunter Dickinson, Markquis Nowell, and Micah Peavy leading the way, along with Kobe Bufkin, a former first-round pick. The Suns have a size and athleticism advantage and should dominate the glass and the paint against the Pelicans.

In their game against Portland, Phoenix committed 20 turnovers, with Maluach turning it over seven times himself. Look for Maluach and the Suns to eliminate many of the sloppy plays they made against the Blazers, and for the Suns’ core trio, plus Kobe Brea, to play much more connected and error-free. Speaking of Brea, he struggled from the floor against Portland, and it was Jevonte Cook who scored 21 points off the bench for Phoenix, including a prolific 3-point shooting performance. Can Brea bounce back after a slow first game?

Prediction

As little value as there is in the final score of these summer league games, this Suns team can, and should, dominate the Pelicans because of their athleticism. The Suns win this game 93-80, and Kobe Brea will lead the team in scoring. But the story of the game will be Koa Peat putting up another repeat performance that makes him look like one of the biggest steals in the NBA draft.

It was a bit surprising, at least to us, when Amile Jefferson left Duke for the Boston Celtics, but it’s clearly worked out well for him.

Currently, the Celtics have him coaching their Summer League team in Las Vegas, and that’s just a chance to learn more.

In this article, he talks about learning from former Duke coach and GOAT Mike Krzyzewski, and also what he’s learned from Joe Mazzulla and his other colleagues with the Celtics coaching staff.

Boston is playing in Las Vegas, and a nice side benefit of that this year is that there was a Brotherhood gathering in Sin City.

Among others, Jayson Tatum attended.

We don’t think this video is from the dinner, but it’s worth watching to see who former Duke stars think should take the last shot.

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The first half of the SummerKnicks’ tenure in Las Vegas is over. That’s cause there is no way they make it to the knockout stage. And hey, not that we care! On to the links and notes.

• The Knicks dropped to 0-2 in Summer League with a 70-49 loss to San Antonio, which brought them closer to the prospect of having an 82-0 season once real basketball starts next fall. No Scenes from Russell, so here are some notes from boxscore-watching G2.
  • Rookie flamethrower Tyler Nickel again led the SummerKnicks, scoring 16 points and making four more threes. He is now 10-of-21 from deep through two games, shooting 47.6 percent from distance, and one of only three players to hoist at least 10-plus threes per game in Las Vegas. Not counting Caleb Wilson (one-game sample), Nickel has the second-best 3P% among dudes launching more than 8 3PA per game.
  • Fellow neophyte Jack Kayil made his debut and finished with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals in 21 minutes. He started slowly, then hit consecutive threes and showed some burst. Most importantly, however, was what Kayil said after the game, with the rookie still dead-set on staying in the USA instead of getting back to Germany: “My goal is to play in the NBA. That’s why I went into the draft.”
  • Pacome Dadiet followed his 20-point opener with 13 points on 4-of-12 shooting and another rough night from deep. He is now 2-of-13 from three through two games. There are flashes, but the efficiency is nowhere to be found, and I doubt anybody can predict, let alone know, what’s next for the Frenchmen.
  • Mohamed Diawara’s SL outings have been much worse, but our own Michael Zeno let everybody know Mo’s struggles are a “big nothingburger.”
  • Lots of folks asking about Liam Robbins this weekend in the comments. 0-for-2 yesterday, no freebies, two boards, one dime, five turnovers, and six personal fouls in 13 minutes. Overall, a minus-14 plus/minus.
  • I have no clue if it’s an SL rule to only use a maximum of 15 players in a single game, but I find it hilarious you don’t find time for two dudes in a 70-49 meaningless game and hand out a couple DNP-CDs to them at this stage. Condolences to Treysen Eaglestaff and Jaden Akins.
• The New York Post’s Stefan Bondy said after Saturday’s game that he “wouldn’t be surprised” if Kayil stays with the Knicks. We’ll see, but if you ask me, this little dude is for some reason starting to be a bit too much of a pain on the rear. Nothing to do with his game, don’t get me wrong, but he and his comments ever since he got drafted are not giving me good vibes at all—I might be dying alone on that front.
• Staying with what might or might not happen next season, remember the Knicks still have a couple of roster spots open and to be filled before (or nearly) the regular season start. That’s why they may still explore a bigger center move during the season, which is the question CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn tried to answer on Friday. A possibility to get there:

“It wouldn’t be terribly surprising to see the Knicks dangle Deuce McBride in such a trade, either. They’re loaded with guard depth, and McBride is entering the final year of his team-friendly, three-year extension. If the Knicks are going to shop for a bigger name, it might make more sense to do so during the season, when filling out roster spots is cheaper and they’d therefore have a bit more flexibility to trade for someone making actual money.”

• Jose Alvarado Sr. gave the New York Post a wonderful look at his son’s journey from the Roberto Clemente projects to becoming an NBA champion with his hometown team. Worth the damn full read. Here’s a little quotable I found extraordinary (yes, you can also find golden nuggets in the photo captions!).

Alvarado Sr. knew the Knicks would win Game 5 of the Finals due to the significance of the number. “He got traded on the fifth. His daughter’s birthday is on the fifth. He’s representing the five boroughs. We live on the fifth floor,” he said.

• OAKAAK DaQuan Jeffries will play for EuroLeague newcomers Besiktas next season. As incredible as it sounds, and even if he only logged 2.7 MPG, DQJ appeared in 17 (!) games during the 2024 (!!) season. These are the final point differences in the games he played: 44, 25, 24, 22, 21, 21, 19, 18, 17, 14, 11, -1, -9, -14, -17, -22, and -23. He logged seven seconds in that one-point loss.
• New Lakers franchise player Austin Reaves praised the Knicks’ chemistry as the key ingredient for their championship. Too bad for Austin, LA decided to literally start from scratch this summer.
• ESPN gave San Antonio an A+ for Wembanyama’s five-year, $252 million extension. Meanwhile, the NBPA is mad and “not a fan” of Victor Wembanyama’s discount deal (he gave up possibly $50 million, including escalators, while Jalen Brunson left $113 million on the table).
• NBPA executive director David Kelly admitted the union should have fought harder against the apron system during the last CBA negotiation, arguing the mechanism is decimating teams and forcing decisions that are based on cost control. At the end of the day, Kelly said that players should not have to “carry the burden” of keeping rosters together.
• Ja Morant introduced himself to Portland as not a “bad guy,” hinting that guns are not in his pockets anymore, wanting a fresh start, and proclaiming his love for nature. I see those clips, and I want to love Ja. Can’t wait for this new chapter to start.
• The Bucks re-signed Gary Trent Jr. to a four-year, $64 million contract extension coming off a vet-min deal and his worst season ever. Yes, you read that right, and that’s why there are already calls for an investigation over potential cap circumvention.

The Aces get a 48-point win over the Mercury, the largest win in franchise history 👏 pic.twitter.com/tXNYcK8bDo

— espnW (@espnW) July 12, 2026

Our relationship with professional athletes is always at a distance. But what if it wasn’t?

The Detroit Lions have a ton of charasmatic players throughout their locker room, and I’m sure on more than one occasion you’ve wondered (or dreamed) about hanging out with them outside of the realm of football. So for today’s Question of the Day, let’s explore that.

Which Lions player would you like to grab dinner with?

My answer: My first inclination is to cheat and say Dan Campbell, but since the question (that I wrote) explicitly says player, I’ll stick to a player.

There are a couple routes I could go with this. If I wanted to have dinner with someone who had awesome stories to tell, I’d probably go with rookie Skyler Gill-Howard (and his great origin story) or Ahmed Hassanein. We have all heard pieces of their origin stories. However, to hear their point of view through their eyes would be incredible. Plus, I’m sure they’d have even more stories to tell.

Or, I could simply just go with some excellent company. From my team experiences, guys like Colby Sorsdal, Sione Vaki, Derrick Barnes, Jack Fox, and Khalil Dorsey—among many others—are some of the nicest people in the locker room.

Finally, it would make sense to go with someone who would be extremely entertaining. If that’s the priority, I would likely go with someone like Kerby Joseph, Teddy Bridgewater, or Jameson Williams.

I’m a little more lowkey, so I think grabbing a beer and burger with a few of those people from the “nice” group would fit my vibes.

Which Lions player do you think would be the bet to grab a dinner with? Share your answer in the comment section below.

In a fate befitting Uncle Dennis, the trade sending Kawhi Leonard to Toronto has hit a road block. Per Shams Charania

Developing: The Los Angeles Clippers-Toronto Raptors trade centered on Kawhi Leonard will not be complete until the NBA investigation into the Clippers is over. Statement from the Clippers to ESPN:
 
For the past 10 months, our organization has fully cooperated with an NBA…

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 9, 2026

“Developing: The Los Angeles Clippers-Toronto Raptors trade centered on Kawhi Leonard will not be complete until the NBA investigation into the Clippers is over. Statement from the Clippers to ESPN:

For the past 10 months, our organization has fully cooperated with an NBA investigation, participating in dozens of interviews, providing tens of thousands of documents, and facilitating access to our staff. While the process has been challenging, we have remained committed to transparency.

On June 30, we reached an agreement in principle to trade Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors. We have since been informed that the trade can only be finalized if the Raptors’ ownership group assumes the risk of penalties related to Kawhi’s contract that could theoretically result from the ongoing investigation. The investigation is ongoing, and we expect the trade to be finalized following its conclusion.

At the heart of this investigation are Joe Sanberg and Aspiration. We did not funnel money to Kawhi Leonard through Aspiration. Like many sophisticated investors, financial institutions, and business partners, we were victims of a fraud initiated by Sanberg, who has been convicted and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

We recognize the uncertainty this has created and the impact it has had on our team, our fans, the Raptors organization, their fans, and the players whose futures remain affected while this process continues.

We remain confident that, when the facts are evaluated fairly and thoroughly, the NBA will confirm exactly what we have said from the beginning: We have not done what we are accused of doing.“

Raptors: "…the NBA league office informed us that as a result of the ongoing investigation involving the Clippers, we would assume the risk of any potential outcome of the investigation impacting Kawhi.

In light of this, we will wait until the league's investigation is… https://t.co/8Zl5qLtscW

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 9, 2026

The Raptors are going to await the results of the report before finalizing the trade, which means Kawhi could stay with the Clippers for the foreseeable future. Whether he will play or stay unavailable pending the trade remains to be seen. If the investigation concludes in the next few weeks, the transition could be smooth. But what sort of logjam is created in the event this report drags into the 2026-2027 season?

For one, the Clippers were set to pick up Brandon Ingram and Gradey Dick as players on the squad. Additionally, there were unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, a 2027 pick swap, and two second-round picks going into the Clippers’ coffers, which have otherwise been depleted over the past few years.

And then there is Leonard. If he is absolved of wrongdoing, will he still be all right going to Toronto knowing the organization postponed the deal because of his possible role in the Aspiration scandal? In other words, is holding off going to develop into resentment or bad blood between The Klaw and the only team he seemed comfortable joining?

This story is developing and will be updated as it unfolds.

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In the wake of a franchise-altering Jaylen Brown trade, Brad Stevens spent the majority of his press conference hammering home the idea of optionality as a key to their path forward. The team has choices without locking themselves into any direction.

It’s hard to remove the emotions from this trade, but leaning on one of Stevens’ other favorite sayings, we can start to see things from a 10,000-foot view. From a higher altitude, the vision for Boston next season becomes more appealing.

As currently constructed, they have the makings of a great team, and most importantly, an elite defensive unit.

Last season, they fared well on that end with the 4th best defensive rating (111.7). They consistently found the right recipe to succeed, usually by dictating where other teams’ offense came from.

Looking at their opponents shot diet, just 20.8% of shots came at the rim, the best in the NBA by a decent margin. Similarly, they managed to push teams toward mid-range attempts. These factors contributed to them suppressing their opponents’ efficiency. They held teams to the third lowest true shooting percentage behind the Thunder and Spurs.

There was one hole in an otherwise strong defense.

The Celtics ranked 29th in opponent turnovers, and 29th in dTOV, which quantifies the amount of defensive net rating attributed to forcing opponent turnovers versus league average. Live-ball takeaways weren’t part of their formula, and their hands matched that, too. Boston ranked 6th lowest in deflections during the regular season, and the number cratered further in the playoffs, where they averaged the fewest in the league at 10 per game.

The absence of takeaways showed up on the other end of the floor as well. Boston had the fewest transition possessions per game in the league, and ranked 25th in points off turnovers. Without forcing live-ball mistakes, they miss out on chances for easy offense.

They still finished with the fourth-best defense in the league despite rarely forcing turnovers.

Of the three teams with better defensive ratings, the Pistons and Thunder ranked first and second in the league at generating turnovers. The Spurs ranked 28th, but made up for it with a 7’5 alien patrolling the paint.

Boston doesn’t have that kind of alien, so more disruption on the ball and in the passing lanes is the clearest lever to pull. That’s exactly what they added this offseason.

Paul George graded out at +1.0 dTOV last season, 93rd percentile among his position. He brought in 1.7 steals to go along with 4.1 deflections per game. He has extremely quick hands and reflexes allowing him to poke the ball free on drives or get a hand on a seemingly open pass.

Paul George quick hands and reflexes pic.twitter.com/DCwLpduTgA

— Pull up shoot (@NElGHT_) July 7, 2026

Mitchell Robinson offers a similarly complementary defensive profile. His +0.3 dTOV ranks in the 85th percentile at center, backed by 1.2 blocks and 0.9 steals a game. He turns possessions over with a STOP% in the 90th percentile, which is a great boost for a team that didn’t have much defensive impact at center behind Queta.

They’ve added two core rotation pieces that historically grade out extremely well defensively, and fill some real gaps.

The draft additions are both signs of what the organization is valuing as well. Dillon Mitchell graded out in the 89th percentile in DBPM and 93rd in steal rate at St. John’s. Chris Cenac Jr. is a mobile big with a 7’5 wingspan and reason to believe he can be more impactful defensively than his Houston stats showed. A combined 9 stocks in their first Summer League appearance is a good introduction.

Put it all together, and Boston has the resources to supercharge their defensive identity.

They can let Hugo and Walsh hound ball handlers while White, Tatum, and George shrink the rest of the floor with their defensive playmaking and help instincts. Then there’s the combination of Queta and Robinson to send back shots at the rim.

For what it’s worth, the Celtics do a great job limiting opponent free throws. They’re tied for the third-fewest opponent free throw attempts allowed in the NBA at 21.2 per game. Being disciplined is a skill that they use to their advantage. But it can also be a sign of a less aggressive approach, reflected in their low forced turnover rates.

There are two ends of the spectrum. The Pistons force the most turnovers per game, but they also allow the most opponent free throws in the league. The Thunder rank second in forcing turnovers, while allowing the seventh-fewest opponent free throws. Boston has room to force more turnovers without completely losing their free throw rate advantage.

They would be wise to amp up the pressure and take a few more calculated risks in the passing and driving lanes. The additions of George, Robinson, Mitchell, and Cenac Jr. all point in that direction. As a team that already wins the possession battle on offense, they have an opportunity to widen that gap on the defensive end.

Mazzulla was blunt about the collapse against Philadelphia, calling the criticism his staff faced deserved. The self-reflection could lead to a few places, but the numbers and film point to one. The defense had a hole. They’ve acquired the right tools to tweak the formula and become a more well-rounded defense that’s difficult to break.

LAS VEGAS — Chaney Johnson might be undersized, underrated and an underdog. But he won’t be outworked.

The second-year Net — who hustled his way from undrafted rookie last season to a two-way contract — is making an impression in Summer League with his hustle and athleticism.

“I knew Chaney was a beast. It’s further confirmed,” assistant coach Dutch Gaitley said. “In the ESPN thing, they asked about all of our rookies: ‘Who’s the one guy you haven’t talked about?’ I was like, ‘It’s Chaney Johnson.’ And the reason is Chaney has to play at the center just because we need him to play the center.

“If we needed Chaney to play point guard, Chaney would play point guard. He does whatever is called for the team. He’s an outstanding teammate. He plays as hard as anybody on the court. I think he’s got a really bright future.”

Johnson had 20 points, 10 rebounds and five steals — all game highs — in Brooklyn’s 83-76 loss to Atlanta.

He’s scored double figures in all four of his appearances — from the California Classic to Las Vegas — and done it all playing out of position, asked to play center.

“That dude is a dog,” Egor Demin said. “He’s the type that he’s the favorite teammate of anybody, because he does all the hard work without feeling like we owe him something. He just does it because that’s what he’s doing.

“Sometimes I feel bad because we don’t reward him enough for his work out there to help us to be successful. He takes it very humbly from a standpoint of, ‘Hey, I’m here for you and anybody else.’ The level of my appreciation towards him is hard to explain. He’s amazing.”

Johnson is averaging 15 points on 64.7 percent shooting, 8.8 rebounds and 2.8 steals this summer.

And he’s done it being tasked with playing center despite standing just 6-foot-7.

“I hang my hat on going out there and playing hard, just controlling everything I can control,” Johnson said.

Asked if center is a position he could grow into, he replied, “It’s whatever gets me paid, you know what I’m saying? I’ll do whatever it takes. So whatever the team needs, I’m there.”

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On the other end of the spectrum, Drake Powell is mired in a horrendous funk. He’s mustered just 11 points through four appearances, shooting 1-for-28 overall and 0-for-14 from deep.

Demin and rookie Mikel Brown Jr. were rested Saturday but are expected to play Tuesday vs. the Kings. … Joshua Jefferson made his debut with nine points on 1-for-8 shooting.

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Danny Wolf had 20 points on 9-for-16 shooting with five boards but had just one assist with four turnovers.

“We need the inverse,” Gaitley said.

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Rookie Zuby Ejiofor from St. John’s had 13 points and six boards for Atlanta.

LAS VEGAS — For Keon Ellis, it was about wanting to be where he’s wanted.

Getting to join a Nets team in desperate need of his defense, and reunite with coach Jordi Fernández, was the perfect free agent situation.

“From what I heard, he was pulling for me really hard,” said Ellis, who played two years in Sacramento when Fernández was the Kings’ associate head coach. “And I know the way he coaches. He’s very passionate. He’s about the right things. He wants to win. So, the familiarity right there was definitely good.”

The Nets and Ellis agreed to a two-year, $18 million contract, with a full mutual option that either side can opt into.

Considering the familiarity between the player and coach, and how the Nets need his 3-and-D profile, it’s hard to see the fit not working out.

“With how much they were offering, that just speaks to how much the team wants you as well. So, that. And then obviously, you’ve got some guys on the staff that you’ve been with before, so you know the ropes a little,” Ellis said. “And then the opportunity here as well. When you combine all those things, they just lined up.”

Point-of-attack defenders who can actually shoot — prototypical 3-and-D types — are pricey in the NBA, but Ellis may provide some of that archetype.

Per 100 possessions last season — split between the Kings and Cavaliers — Ellis ranked in the 93rd percentile in steals (2.7), in the 95th percentile in blocks (1.5) and the 96th percentile in both turnovers forced (1.6) and deflections (6.4).

His stop percentile of 4.4 ranked in the 98th percentile.

“It’s just about the effort. I go out there and I just try to make it tough on guys,” Ellis said. “You’re playing against the best players in the world. They’re gonna score; they’re gonna get to their spots. You’re gonna have bad defensive games [and] good defensive games. But the mindset of every night trying to do the right things, be in the right spots and just attack the game plan. That’ll help everyone accomplish the goal.

“I’m not the greatest defender ever, but with team defense, everyone’s on the same page, that helps everyone a little bit better. Just me coming in, I’m more of a lead by example kind of guy. So I think just me going in and playing hard, that’s what motivates the next guy to go just as hard.”

Two seasons ago, Ellis was even better. He was the only player in the league to rank in the top 10 in both steals (1.5) and 3-point percentage (.433).

But he backslid somewhat this past campaign. After averaging 24 minutes in the regular season and notching a plus-4.5 net rating, Ellis struggled in the postseason. He averaged just seven minutes and recorded a minus-15.9 net rating in 12 appearances for Cleveland.

Still, playoff woes are a luxury for the rebuilding Nets, a long way from those sorts of worries. Considering how defensively challenged they were — and how badly Drake Powell, their only guard who plays tough point-of-attack defense, has been struggling on offense in summer league play so far — it’s hard to see Ellis not playing a huge role.

Ellis is confident he can get back to his 3-and-D form of two years ago.

“Just the consistency and an established role. A lot of things were up and down and moving parts, and you just never really knew what was going on,” Ellis said. “The consistency really helped with that, that year. You knew what was going on. There weren’t too many moving parts. So, that was just the biggest thing.”

Ellis is looking forward to getting settled in Brooklyn — even if he’s suffering from sticker shock.

“Oh, my God. Trying to find a house, it’s tough,” Ellis laughed. “I have to sacrifice something, some space, the prices, it’s a lot. But I’m definitely excited to be able to kind of just walk around the city and hit different spots and all the restaurants. I hear there’s a lot of good food and a lot of things to do. So I’m definitely excited to see about that, but I’ll definitely be losing some square footage.”

My dad was born a few years before the Boston Celtics, in 1943, and he grew up playing basketball in the small town of Forestburg, South Dakota.

His parents had traveled with his father’s construction crew in his early years, but settled down near the farm where his mother grew up when he reached school age.

He was a point guard for the Forestburg Buccaneers, who were coached by Quentin C. Miles, a legend in South Dakota basketball circles. Born in 1921, Q.C. grew up playing the game when there was still a jump ball after every made basket. Miles, who also taught physics and chemistry, coached Forestburg into the state’s B tournament in 1958, where my dad saw limited action as a freshman.

Dad watched basketball on TV whenever he had the chance, and that’s how he became a Celtics fan. They were televised fairly often, and dad wanted to play like Bob Cousy.

Life, of course, intervened. Dad went to Augustana College in Sioux Falls, where he took a degree in mathematics and then a Master’s in the same subject from the University of North Dakota—at the same time that a very young Phil Jackson was tearing up the hardwood there under the direction of Bill Fitch and Jimmy Rodgers.

He spent a year teaching at Minot State before being drafted into the Army. He spent three and a half years in Arlington, Virginia, where he met my mom, before returning to Minot State.

Things didn’t work out in Minot, and my dad ended up looking for work back home in South Dakota. He would later joke that the typical response at job interviews to his Master’s in math was, “so you’re an accountant…?”

He eventually landed a gig with the state doing budget projections and data analysis for the Department of Social Services, and proceeded to raise a family of six kids in a white ranch style house with black trim near an elementary school on the east side of Pierre.

Mostly he was home every night a little bit after 5:00. There were occasions when he’d have to work after hours, and sometimes we’d get to go to the office and see where he worked on those weekends or evenings.

But, again, mostly his job was a 40-hour a week undertaking that left him plenty of time for the rest of us.

I only remember one or two business trips from those years, and the one that stands out came in January of 1984, when he had to go to Kansas City, Missouri.

He and some of his staff were put up at the Adam’s Mark near the Truman Sports Complex, a once luxurious hotel that’s fallen on hard times. It’s been fixed up for the World Cup, and the hope is that it will be the center of a mixed use development in the future, but in 1984, it was a top of the line facility.

And on Tuesday, January 17, of that year, dad and one of his work buddies traveled into Kansas City to watch the Kings play the Celtics.

The Kings were just about at the end of their run in Kansas City. These Kings were a vagabond team, starting off as the Rochester Royals before moving to Cincinnati, and then into a situation where they split time between Kansas City and Omaha and carried an awkward designation using both cities. The Kings dropped Omaha from their name after three years, although they did continue to play the occasional game there.

The Kings would move to Sacramento a little over a year after my dad saw them play. When they moved, I remember him saying that he wasn’t surprised because there were plenty of empty seats when he was there. In Sacramento, the Kings spent two years playing in a refurbished warehouse while waiting for a permanent home.

While in Kansas City, the Kings played at the Kemper Arena, a dimly lit venue with a bit of an old-school vibe to it, featuring a steep upper deck that provided good sightlines at the expense of leaving fans feeling like they perhaps needed sherpas to assist them in finding their seats.

The arena opened in 1974 on the former site of the Kansas City Stockyards. It was named after Rufus Crosby Kemper, Sr., a member of a wealthy banking family who donated $3.2 million to the construction of the $22 million arena.

From the exterior, the arena is dominated by three huge structural assemblies that carry the roof; there were no windows to speak of in 1984, and no principal entry point, just four facades covered in white steel panels. There were luxury suites on the concourse level, a relative novelty for the time, and a total capacity of 16,659 for basketball.

Its roof collapsed in 1979, and it hosted the NCAA’s Final Four championship round in 1988; the winner, Kansas, was effectively the home team, hailing from Lawrence, not even an hour down the turnpike from the arena.

What is now the Hy-Vee Arena is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, being the first major U.S. commission for noted architect Helmut Jahn. It’s currently a multipurpose facility that targets youth sports. The arena has basically been split in half, with a floor added between the upper and lower decks creating two arenas stacked on top of each other.

But for one night in 1984, it was the place where my dad got to see Larry Bird play.

It was cold out, and dark, with temps in the teens and a light snow falling as my dad and 11,477 other fans trekked into the West Bottoms neighborhood off I-670 where the Kings played, just about a stone’s throw from the Kansas state line.

The Celtics were coached by KC Jones—his first year in that role—and the Kings were coached by Cotton Fitzsimmons, a Hall-of-Famer whose best years were coming up in a second stint coaching the Phoenix Suns. Cotton was in his last year with the Kings, with whom he managed to eke out a slightly better than .500 winning percentage over a six-year run—and this was no mean feat, by the way, as just five of the Kings’ 32 coaches have winning records.

The Kings were led by Eddie Johnson, Larry Drew and Mike Woodson (now an assistant coach with Sacramento), and were on their way to a 38-44 record.

The Celtics… well, the Celtics were on their way to another championship and another banner.

Boston was wrapping up a three-game road trip. They had just suffered their worst loss of the season, a 106-87 drubbing at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, on Sunday. In that game, Bird hit just three shots on thirteen attempts.

Kansas City was coming off a win against the hapless San Diego Clippers, who were themselves just about to relocate to Los Angeles.

My dad had been watching the Celtics play on TV for more than half his life by this point in time, and he was finally going to get to see them in person.

They did not disappoint.

Larry Bird hit 15 of 21 shots and finished with 38 points, nine rebounds and thirteen assists, while Dennis Johnson, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale finished with 20 points apiece. As a team, the Celtics shot 59%.

They shot 67% in the first quarter and established their final nine-point margin of victory by the close of that quarter.

To their credit, Kansas City kept Boston honest despite enduring a poor shooting night from the team’s stars, Eddie Johnson and Larry Drew (a combined 11-32 from the field). On the offensive end of things, they were led by reserve center Lasalle Thompson and Mike Woodson, who finished the game with 21 and 18 points, respectively.

The Kings made things interesting early in the fourth quarter, clawing their way back from a sixteen-point deficit to draw nearly even with the Celtics, 95-94, with just under nine minutes left in the game.

The Celtics responded with a 20-9 run.

Bird, McHale and Parish accounted for fifteen of those twenty points.

Bird was at the peak of his abilities in 1984, the first of three consecutive years in which he would win the league’s MVP award, and he was the unquestioned star of a game that featured four future Hall-of-Famers.

After the game, Kings rookie Dane Suttle said, “He lets people see what they came to see.”

For a kid from Forestburg, this was certainly true.

---

P.S. If you want to see a great photo from that game, click here. We don’t have the rights to this photo, but I can still share it from my Newspapers.com account.

To start what should be a pretty obvious point to get across, if you seriously have concerns about a player because of Summer League, you should do the following:

• Use your free will to turn the game off
• Do something else (read a book, watch the World Cup, go outside)
• Watch a YouTube video of the Finals run
• Relax

The greatest prospect of all time could go 1-for-45 in a Summer League game, and it wouldn’t matter at all. The only use of Summer League is extra reps for young guys, and so that fans can get a quick look at the shiny new toys they got in that year’s draft.

As someone who is very opposed to Shiny New Toy syndrome, I too have fallen for our latest toy, ol’ Double (K)Nickel’s

Tyler Nickel summer league game 2 pic.twitter.com/vNrWi59QWM

— Teg🚨 (@IQfor3) July 11, 2026

But while Nickel has looked outstanding as a spot-up shooter, pretty much everyone else sucks. Pacôme Dadiet has done some good things, and Jack Kayil looked solid in the second half on Saturday, but other than that? Yeesh. The one center they have is doing this.

Halftime game 2 for your summer Knicks:

17 points. The whole team.

6-30 shooting

Center Liam Robbins:
11 minutes
5 fouls
4 turnovers pic.twitter.com/B65MsBV0GR

— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) July 11, 2026

Frankly, watching them is a chore. They’ve scored a pitiful 65 and 49 points in their two games. The latter total is the first time in 10 years that someone scored less than 50 in a Vegas Summer League game. The 2016 Kings, led by Skal Labissiere, are not ones to emulate.

It’s fair to have been extremely disappointed in just how feeble they’ve looked, even if we’re literally just over four weeks removed from an NBA championship and this roster has as little projectable talent as humanly possible.

Over the next three games, the four guys we’ve been looking forward to seeing will continue to be showcased, but you really have to hope we can at least get something out of Mo Diawara, who’s been… bad, to say the least.

Mohamed Diawara per game through 2 summer league games:

3.5 points
7% shooting
-26 pic.twitter.com/7Oup6IGWe7

— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) July 12, 2026

But here’s the neat part. It doesn’t matter.

Hell, this isn’t even the “well, it’s only Summer League” excuse. For a player specifically like Diawara, this setting is literal hell for him.

I worried in my pre-summer storylines piece from earlier this week that Diawara would be tasked with handling the ball too much. While he’s not completely running point guard, he’s getting pretty much all of his touches 30+ feet from the basket as an initiator.

He is not an initiator.

Summer League is for testing boundaries and challenging guys with roles they aren’t comfortable with. For Diawara, the Knicks are giving him some truly unreasonable challenges.

A guy with a very limited offensive bag at the moment is being tasked with initiating an offense with negative firepower (except for Nickel). Pretty much every shot he’s taken is either a grenade, contested, or not in rhythm. I didn’t watch much of Saturday’s game with other things on TV, but Friday’s looked like the team was intentionally trying to make things harder for him.

Diawara is a sponge. His play quality reflects that of his teammates.

We saw him have some extremely impactful minutes in the regular season when he had real NBA rotation players around him. This is the same guy who fearlessly rained threes on the Western Conference champions and locked up Jaylen Brown.

Mohammed Diawara

2/8/2026

10 PTS | 3 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 100 FG%

The Knicks rookie gave fans reasons for excitement many times throughout the season including elite defense against Jaylen Brown and the Celtics along with perfect shooting pic.twitter.com/R9G2Vqgmr1

— KATWrld (@kat_wrld) June 15, 2026

The ugliest minutes for Diawara have come when his teammates around him are at his level. Starting when he was permanently booted from the rotation in late March to all the garbage time minutes he received in the playoffs, he looked clunky. His shots were way off, his touches were in awkward spots, and he was asked to do too much.

Now in Summer League, he is the best player out there. When a 20-year-old who was picked No. 51 overall less than 13 months ago is the best player on the floor, that’s a problem. It’s even more of a problem when there’s no point guard to run the show.

Ultimately, that’s what makes this look so ugly. The entire offense is disjointed because there’s no floor general to stabilize it. It’s five headless chickens running around trying to put a ball in the basket. Their shot quality is disgustingly bad.

I was disappointed when I saw Tyler Kolek wasn’t doing Summer League because I feared this. I truly believe that you’d be seeing a lot more quality looks and Diawara being able to really do what made him so effective last year off the ball if he had a maestro like Kolek out there.

Does Kolek have anything to prove out here? Probably not, but for a guy who received zero seconds of meaningful playoff action, he isn’t totally above this.

Ultimately, if you decided not to watch a second of the next three games, I wouldn’t blame you. We’ve watched too much good basketball of late to see our logo associated with whatever this is. Hopefully, things get better with Kayil seemingly fully integrated into the plans now.

At the end of the day, we’re still champs until we ain’t.

LAS VEGAS — Jack Kayil, the Knicks draft pick from Germany, made his desire clear Saturday: He doesn’t want to be stashed overseas.

“My goal is to play in the NBA,” the 20-year-old point guard said after his summer league debut in an ugly 70-49 loss to the Spurs. “That’s why I went into the draft.”

Kayil was picked 39th overall last month but took a while to join the Knicks amid reports of a contract dispute with his team in Berlin. On the contract problems, Kayil was mum — “there were things going on that I don’t want to get into,” he said — but it’s clear he wants to stay with the Knicks.

“It’s not my decision, so I’m just trying to show myself in the best way, and it is what it is,” he said, adding later, “I’m super happy I also got drafted, and we’ll see what happens in the next days, weeks, whatever.”

If he joins the NBA next season, Kayil is a candidate for a two-way contract and perhaps development in the G-League.

He showed playmaking potential Saturday, but overall the Knicks’ offense was atrocious — similar to Friday’s loss to the Nets.

Kayil, who didn’t play Friday, finished with 12 points, five rebounds and three assists on 5-for-14 shooting in 21 minutes.

He and fellow rookie Tyler Nickel were the only offensive threats for New York, with Mohamed Diawara going scoreless in another dud.

“It’s difficult to say [what the differences are from the German league],” Kayil said. “It’s only one game. For me, it still feels like basketball, and [I] try to play the right way. And everywhere, it’s kind of same. It’s obviously different players to play against and a different kind of speed and everything. But I’m used to different systems, so it wasn’t difficult to adapt to that. So for me, it wasn’t that big of a difference.”

TJ Saint, the Knicks’ summer league coach, was complimentary.

“Really liked him. Started watching him on film after the draft,” Saint said. “Thought he could get in the paint. Thought he had a quick burst.”

LAS VEGAS — For obvious reasons, Tyler Nickel prefers to wear No. 5.

But that uniform was taken by Knicks guard Jose Alvarado. So Nickel settled for double-nickel.

“T-Nick is my nickname, but a lot of people call me T-5,” said Nickel, the No. 47 overall pick in last month’s draft. “So [No.] 5 has been me. So when [No.] 55 was available, I was like, ‘OK, I can’t get [No.] 5, so [No.] 55 is cool.’ ”

If Nickel carves out an NBA career, he’ll be defined by a different digit — 3.

As the second-round pick demonstrated in his first two summer league games, his greatest asset is his proficiency from beyond the arc.

Nickel dropped six treys on 10 attempts Friday against the Nets, the lone positive in a blowout defeat that featured ugly performances from summer league vets Mohamed Diawara, Pacôme Dadiet and Dillon Jones.

On Saturday, Nickel again was the Knicks’ leading scorer with 16 points on 6-for-14 shooting in 30 minutes in the Knicks’ 70-49 loss to the Spurs.

“I definitely feel like I have some comparisons in the league. I feel like I’m a mix of some different guys: my size, my strength, my shooting ability,” Nickel said. “I feel really comfortable shooting off the move, so like [Detroit’s] Duncan Robinson, [Cleveland’s] Max Strus, [Boston’s] Sam Hauser. But then I have my own type of way of being. So it’s kind of a mix of a lot of people but also myself.”

All those players, including Nickel, have two things in common: They’re catch-and-shoot specialists, and they’re white.

“Hey, listen,” the 22-year-old Vanderbilt product laughed when told he was making just white-player comparisons. “They got roles in the league.”

Nickel, who is from Virginia and talks with a Southern twang, will struggle to stay on an NBA court if he can’t competently defend.

It’s considered his weakness, but the 6-foot-7 Nickel has the size to make it work with enough effort.

According to TJ Saint, coach of the Knicks’ summer league team, Nickel committed to defense during minicamp last week.

“He’s been shooting all right. His defense has actually been impressive in the camp,” Saint said. “When we were in the airport the other day, I went over to talk to him, and he was studying our playbook, so I already like where he’s at, getting ahead of the game.”

Despite his promise, Nickel is unlikely to command a standard contract for the defending champs.

He’s a candidate for a two-way deal, though, and that should all be sorted out during training camp in late September into October.

Nickel’s 18-point game against the Nets drew the attention of Josh Hart, who tweeted during the action, “[No.] 55 got a chop,” in reference to the forward’s shooting stroke.

As Kevin McCullar Jr. and especially Diawara demonstrated last season, there always could be unexpected opportunities for young players.

In the meantime, Nickel’s wearing two 5s in Vegas and taking 3s.

“I heard my name called [at the draft], and seeing it being the Knicks, I was super excited,” Nickel said. “Obviously, a championship organization. I thought it was perfect; a perfect situation to see what winning is all about. The standard that they hold everybody to in the program, I feel like it’s perfect for me to be on.”

Vegas intel

Everybody is awaiting The Decision 2.0 from LeBron James — including another future Hall of Famer on the market.

According to a league source, Russell Westbrook is a candidate to join the Heat but not if LeBron signs in Miami.

Westbrook, 37, is a diminished version of his former MVP self but still averaged 15.2 points over 64 games last season with the Kings.

James, meanwhile, is sifting through his options in free agency. Miami, Cleveland and Philadelphia are considered the front-runners.

Westbrook and James were teammates with the Lakers for 1 ½ seasons and struggled, winning just 33 games and falling to 11th in the West in 2021-22.

LAS VEGAS —  They say America is the land of opportunity, but in the NBA world, that place can be narrowed down to Las Vegas in July.

On Saturday, the Lakers were shorthanded against the Mavericks with Cameron Carr ruled out shortly before tip. Arthur Kaluma took advantage of the opportunity.

He was magnificent in LA’s 91-70 win over Dallas, scoring 34 points on 11-16 shooting from the field, including six of his 10 3-pointers.

“It’s just his confidence,” Lakers coach Ty Abbott said about Kaluma’s game after the win. “And understanding of how to play without the ball in your hand. Last night was a situation where he’s just finding windows, he’s crashing, he’s creating extra possessions, getting putbacks, tip-ins, and he’s getting fouls, and he’s taking advantage of smaller defenders. Today, he had some actions run for him and he was ready.”

A performance like this puts a spotlight on a player and left many wondering if the Lakers should make him a permanent member of the roster.

Arthur Kaluma is a very gifted offensive player – has to be one of the best in Vegas not currently on a two-way deal. https://t.co/2Gm0Ojb1hI

— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) July 12, 2026

LA has all three two-way spots by Chris Mañon, AK Okereke and Peter Suder, so Kaluma would have to unseat one of those players. However, just because someone is signed to a two-way contract today doesn’t mean it’ll be that way tomorrow.

While Mañon has had some quality games, Okereke and Suder have struggled during Summer League. And with a performance like this, Kaluma is making a compelling case for LA to figure out how to give him a two-way contract before someone else does.

In LA’s first game in Las Vegas on Friday, he was literally perfect from the field, knocking down all five of his shots and scoring 18 points. Saturday was more of the same.

Kaluma wasted no time getting to work. He scored the team’s second basket with a nice pump fake and then a drive inside. Kaluma absorbed the contact and finished in the paint. 

He repeated this process throughout the first half, and then, when the opportunity to hit a three presented itself, he took advantage with a pair of makes from beyond the arc. 

18-point first half for Arthur 💪 pic.twitter.com/0bIPvLWTA5

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) July 12, 2026

During the second half, Kaluma stayed hot. Whenever the Mavericks were threatening a comeback, he seemed to hit a timely three to keep them at bay.

Kaluma has been part of the Lakers ecosystem before. He played with South Bay last year and was also on the Summer League roster. With a year of professional development under his belt, he’s been able to showcase it in Las Vegas. 

“There’s a certain hunger that you have to have in order to be successful in the G [League],” Kaluma said. “And I feel like that drive that I had my first year in it pushed me into this summer to really get better and work on my game and come here and have the opportunity to perform at Summer League.”

That’s the thing about a player like Kaluma: he’s trying to carve out a role, so he’ll be hungry and ready for any chance he gets. The moments have arrived for him during Summer League and he’s delivered. 

Everyone at Summer League has something to prove. The top draft picks want to prove they are worth the hype. The second-year players are trying to prove they don’t need to be here and the two-way guys want to keep their spots or earn standard deals.

Kaluma fits outside of this box. He is an Exhibit 10 player trying to keep his career going and find a role at a higher level. Thanks to his play this weekend, that moment could happen sooner rather than later.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.