California Classic and Salt Lake Summer League Thoughts

Brian breaks down his thoughts on the Salt Lake Summer League and the California Classic.

We have now seen a few teams play some summer league basketball. These are my takeaways from summer league so far. First off, check out our article from yesterday where

Zach Reifschneider

talks about what you should take away from summer league:

This is usually a decent rule of thumb.

Rookie: It doesn’t matter what happens

Sophomore: They should be very good at the least, concerning if not

3rd Year: They shouldn’t be here, and if they are, they better be dominating

Summer League basketball isn’t too dissimilar to G League Play, and there are plenty of people that put up numbers in the G League that don’t get a shot in the NBA.

California Classic

LA Lakers

• I’ll start with Bronny because I was honestly impressed. There were steps forward. I don’t think he’s going to be in the rotation next season, but I was encouraged by the offensive growth. It’s still summer league, though.

• Let’s talk Dalton Knecht. I’m worried. Frankly, I was never as high on him as the consensus. I had him at 19 on my big board, was completely on board with him “falling,” and the fact that he’s an older scoring guard who doesn’t do anything else, and only had one incredible year in college, worries me. He can still make it as an NBA player, but the upside is capped, and I think we’re seeing that. I’d probably still take him over Bronny (for now).

• Cole Swider has been one of those guys from the Miami undrafted system. He spent time with the Pelicans and Pistons last season. He’s played well, but I’m not expecting a lot here.

• Darius Bazley played well, but we should be expecting as much. He’s entering his sixth season. Don’t take anything out of it.

Golden State Warriors

• Alex Toohey only played one game due to the trade. It wasn’t the best outing, but it’s one game. Don’t take much from it.

• Will Richard has a lot of fans in the college ranks. Many people are pretty certain that he’ll find a way to be an NBA player despite his limitations. He at least took more shots than he normally got to show at Florida. If he ends up making it, Golden State is one of the teams that can get the most out of him. We’ll see more in Vegas.

• Coleman Hawkins was alright so far. This is a great spot for him to be in. It’s very possible nothing happens, but he’s someone I’d keep an eye on in the G League next season.

• Taran Armstrong was on a two-way last season. He didn’t shoot the ball well but made some good passes. Hopefully he bounces back in Vegas. He’ll likely spend most of his time in the G League next season.

• Chris Manon had his moments for the Warriors. He’s been an analytics darling for a while. could be a name to monitor in the G League.

• Isaiah Mobley put up numbers, but he’s entering his fourth season now. I wouldn’t expect him to stick around.

• Blake Hinson can shoot, but he’s pretty old. I wouldn’t expect anything there at this point.

Miami Heat

• Let’s talk Kasparas Jakucionis. Look, don’t panic. It’s summer league. That said, he does look outmatched athletically. Considering that was one of the known drawbacks with him, and the fact he fell to 20, I’d monitor the situation a little bit. I would advise against reaching on him in dynasty leagues for now.

• Why is Kel’el Ware here? Enough said.

• Pelle Larsson has been good for the Heat. Happy to say I got that one wrong pre-draft. He looks like what you’d expect. He’s been one of the best players in summer league so far.

• Keshad Johnson has been playing well, but the three-point shot hasn’t gone down at an efficient clip yet. It’s only three games—don’t take too much from this—but the fact that he’s been impactful defensively, getting rebounds, and at least scoring (which was one of the issues in college), is a positive for now. Honestly, I wouldn’t be shocked if he finds a way into the rotation this year.

• Vlad Goldin has been what you expect and want. He’ll likely spend time in the G League this year but could be an interesting name to monitor down the road.

• Bryson Warren got some buckets. We knew he could score. He’ll likely spend another year in the G League, and maybe something develops.

San Antonio Spurs

• Carter Bryant has been really impactful defensively and isn’t hunting for his shot. He’s going to be fine. Don’t panic. However, he doesn’t project to be a good fantasy player, and we knew this pre-draft too.

• David Jones put up buckets and filled up the box score. I really liked him last year and was confused why he wasn’t a priority for teams. Even now, I’m wondering what’s going to happen. I think he can play, but if teams don’t value him, he won’t play.

• Jameer Nelson Jr. had his moments. There could be something there as a backup PG. He’ll likely be in the G League again, but considering the Spurs just traded Branham and Wesley, maybe Nelson is given a shot in emergency cases.

• Harrison Ingram hasn’t hit shots, and at this point, I’d be worried if you have him. I’d probably move on in most cases.

Salt Lake Summer League

So to start, I actually went in person on Saturday, so I wrote quite a few notes here. My main takeaways in person were:

1. Ace Bailey and GG Jackson look huge in person. The fact that they’re so skinny makes it stand out a lot. Ace was engaged despite not playing much in the first game.

2. Jaylen Wells getting rid of the afro threw me off a lot. For some reason, he actually started walking up the stadium stairs next to me during the second game, and the fact he didn’t have his afro caused me to not recognize him immediately.
   Fun fact: He actually went to high school about 15 minutes away from where I did.

3. Brooks Barnhizer’s mustache is very noticeable.

Now to the analysis:

Oklahoma City Thunder

• Ajay Mitchell was the best player on the floor most of the time. He was getting into the paint whenever he wanted, played great defense. e shouldn’t have been playing. I think he might force the Thunder to move Topic, honestly. He’s better right now and a better fit with the players they have.

• Nikola Topic has been impressive. He hasn’t hit shots in some games, but he’s crafty. The shot form looks better, and it’s good to see him on the court. Topic had three steals where he read the pass perfectly in transition. However, he’s been getting beat off the dribble quite often. He had a much better second half in the first game.

• Brooks Barnhizer has been exactly what you want: good off the ball, physical, and hitting shots. He’s rebounded like crazy. He’s not trying to score, just doing the little things. The Thunder might’ve done it again, and Brooks is a very good fantasy player. If there’s a player on a two-way contract to consider reaching for, it’s Brooks.

• Malevy Leons played alright, but I walked away feeling a lot more skeptical about his long-term outlook. I had Malevy at 57 on my 2024 big board, and I think I’m probably going to end up being wrong. He’s truly a tease in a lot of ways.

• Chris Youngblood scored the ball well. He was physical and doing the dirty work. I don’t think much will happen from him, but he could be a name to watch. Also, shout-out to USF’s Bulls.

• Mady Sissoko can jump. The defense wasn’t very good, though, and he’s undersized. It was entertaining to watch at least.

• Shout-out Alex Ducas for getting his championship last season and signing a contract with the Brisbane Bullets. He’ll likely be in the NBL for his professional career and be a long-time starter there.

Memphis Grizzlies

• Jaylen Wells was dominant the whole time. Honestly, I have no idea why he played, but it was nice to see him out there. He’ll likely be a starter next season for the Grizzlies.

• GG Jackson did a good job scoring. He still looks physically underdeveloped compared to the other players on the floor, but his size and athleticism stand out. It was pretty obvious that he was the youngest player on the court.

• Cam Spencer can shoot. He was one of the best players on the team and looked bigger than a lot of the guards out there. He might be in the rotation next season, but there’s a real athleticism deficiency compared to others.

• Javon Small has found a way to be impactful despite not really standing out. No pun intended, but he really looked small compared to others in person. The athleticism didn’t pop.

• Armando Bacot had moments, but I don’t see it with him. He didn’t stand out in a positive way.

Philadelphia 76ers

• VJ Edgecombe looked exactly like what you'd expect: super explosive and getting into the paint when he wants. Do not overreact to this performance or the injury. It’s one game, and summer league play tends to benefit players like VJ. It’s not like the Jazz had a bunch of high-level defenders out there.

• Johni Broome looked exactly as expected. He’s been putting up numbers and being super impactful. He’s going to be great in the G League next season. The issue is that he’s an undersized big man who might not be able to shoot it consistently. He can pass, but you aren’t playing him in the NBA like you did in college. He’s obviously really strong and held his own in this setting.

• Justin Edwards has been playing great. Really showing that Kentucky and Calipari lost him a lot of money. At least he’s home. He should be in the rotation next season, and maybe there’s more upside long-term, but I wouldn’t bet on it. He probably projects as a low-end starter.

• Watching Adem Bona in person, I was really impressed. His athleticism was apparent. Sometimes, you just need to see someone in person to get it. I think I get it with Bona now. I kept questioning why I didn’t have him in the top 30 of my big board. At worst, he feels like a backup center.

• Judah Mintz can score, but he’s not a threat from three. His style of play is not effective in the NBA. I wouldn’t read into his performance at all, to be honest.

• Jalen Hood-Schifino probably just isn’t it barring some massive off-season improvement. He looked outclassed and couldn’t capitalize on his “revenge game” against the Jazz.

Utah Jazz

• Ace Bailey looks huge in person. He’s been scoring more off of off-ball movement, but it's very similar to the Rutgers tape. He’s making it harder than he needs to. He played a lot better in the next two games than he did in the first. There’s potential there, and something I thought was really good from him is that his passing vision improved from what we saw at Rutgers. Again, it’s summer league, but I’m cautiously optimistic.

• Brice Sensabaugh is hitting shots and playing good defense. He’s been one of the best players on the floor. Frankly, he shouldn’t go to Vegas. I’m surprised the Jazz asked him to play in summer league at all, but he showed everyone that he doesn’t need to be there. He was dominant. Exactly what you want to see out of someone in their third year. He’ll have plenty of opportunities this season to play.

• Kyle Filipowski was exactly what you wanted. Dominant and showing passing flashes. He also got posterized twice by Adem Bona, which is a bit concerning. Still, he showed that he’s too good for summer league.

• Cody Williams has been aggressive and playing decent defense. He had some really bad plays, and there are times he still looks overmatched physically, but this has been an improvement. The shot looks smoother than it has in the past. He looks more confident than he did last year. I’m hoping he’ll take a step forward next season. He’s a cautious buy-low in dynasty leagues. That being said, most teams that have Cody are likely not very good and won’t want to give up on him entirely. There are others that are done with him and want him off the team.

• Isaiah Collier was aggressive. He was pointing things out to Clayton and had a play where he defended Broome and held his own. He had a great full-court skip pass to Flip in the first game. He became more selfish as time went on, and I also think that could be his downfall. We knew Collier could do what he showed at summer league. The question is about the shot, and until we get that answer, there are real long-term concerns.

• Walter Clayton has done a good job facilitating and running the point. I feel like he got better as the league progressed. The Jazz closed with him over Collier in the second game. His three-point shooting ability was on display. He played good defense but is small. Defense is the key for him and his NBA future.

• If only Adama Sanogo were taller. I think there’s a backup in there somewhere if that were the case.