Ranking: The best players of the Vegas Summer League

Beyond the Victor Wembanyama hype, there’s nothing like the Vegas Summer League, a unique mix of the young talent in the league with free agents eager to earn a spot in the NBA. Who balled out in Sin City? Here’s the answer.

Beyond the Victor Wembanyama hype, there’s nothing like the Vegas Summer League, a unique mix of the young talent in the league with free agents eager to earn a spot in the NBA.

Who balled out in Sin City? Here’s the answer.

Ranking: The best players of the Salt Lake City Summer League

Las Vegas aside, there’s no other city more linked to the Summer League historically than Salt Lake City. The home of the Jazz hosted a tournament for the first time in 1984, revamping it in 2019 with its current name. Here are the best players for …

Las Vegas aside, there’s no other city more linked to the Summer League historically than Salt Lake City. The home of the Jazz hosted a tournament for the first time in 1984, revamping it in 2019 with its current name.

Here are the best players for the 2023 edition:

Ranking: The best players of the 2023 California Classic Summer League

Since 2018, Sacramento has hosted the California Classic, which now replaces the defunct Orlando Summer League as a secondary spot for July basketball action. Here are the best players of the 2023 tournament, per HoopsHype’s Global Rating:

Since 2018, Sacramento has hosted the California Classic, which now replaces the defunct Orlando Summer League as a secondary spot for July basketball action.

Here are the best players of the 2023 tournament, per HoopsHype’s Global Rating:

2023 Summer League rosters: Who’s playing where this year

The Summer League is almost back. The traditional NBA showcase for young players and aspiring free agents returns to Sacramento (July 3-5), Salt Lake City (July 3-6) and Las Vegas (July 7-17). As usual, we’ve put together how the rosters look based …

The Summer League is almost back. The traditional NBA showcase for young players and aspiring free agents returns to Sacramento (July 3-5), Salt Lake City (July 3-6) and Las Vegas (July 7-17). As usual, we’ve put together how the rosters look based on official updates, media reports and HoopsHype’s own sources.

The best scorers in Vegas Summer League history

Although NBA Summer League success isn’t always a surefire indicator of future NBA success, it can sometimes give us a good idea of who is going to be a smooth bucket-getter once the season rolls around. Just look at the No. 2 player on the upcoming …

Although NBA Summer League success isn’t always a surefire indicator of future NBA success, it can sometimes give us a good idea of who is going to be a smooth bucket-getter once the season rolls around.

Just look at the No. 2 player on the upcoming ranking. Who might that be? One Damian Lillard, who averaged 26.5 points in the 2012 Summer League action. Some might say he went on to become a pretty decent NBA scorer afterward.

And what about the guy who finished right after him on the list, Lou Williams? The Sixth Man legend showed off his future elite scoring prowess first in the 2007 Summer League when he put up 25.2 points in five games.

Below, check out the best scoring averages in Las Vegas Summer League history.

The oldest players in 2022 Summer League

Fans are excited for summer league because it comprises all of the highly touted rookies who were drafted recently, but there are also a lot of players who are trying to get back or into the NBA. Older players have always been a staple in summer …

Fans are excited for summer league because it comprises all of the highly touted rookies who were drafted recently, but there are also a lot of players who are trying to get back or into the NBA.

Older players have always been a staple in summer league, although this year there are not as many big names as last year, when Michael BeasleyKenneth Faired and eventual NBA champion Gary Payton II participated.

Anyways, here are the oldest players that will be a part of this year’s summer league:

2022 Summer League rosters: Who’s playing where this year

NBA summer league basketball will be played in July for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Most of the 2022 draftees are expected to dress up for their new teams – along with young players under contract trying to improve their game …

NBA summer league basketball will be played in July for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Most of the 2022 draftees are expected to dress up for their new teams – along with young players under contract trying to improve their game and free agents looking for new deals.

The NBA Summer League in Las Vegas will once again be the main attraction, with all 30 franchises talking part from July 7 to July 17. Before that, the Kings will host the California Classic and the Jazz will do the same at the Salt Lake City Summer League.

As usual, we’ve put together how the rosters look as of now based on official updates, media reports and HoopsHype’s own sources.

Here you go:

Payton Pritchard was too good for 2021 NBA Summer League

Payton Pritchard was a level above his competition at NBA Summer League

Watching 2020 first-round pick Payton Pritchard slicing up NBA Summer League defenses came as no surprise to Celtics fans who saw the Oregon product have a solid rookie campaign.

He was a clear standout on a Boston team that made it all the way to the NBA Summer League championship game, and the eye test and numbers came together to prove one simple fact: he was too good to be in Las Vegas.

FiveThirtyEight’s Jared Dubin recently looked at what being “too good” for NBA Summer League would mean for players like Pritchard going forward. Using a metric called Game Score to determine their production in Las Vegas, Dubin found that Pritchard had the third-highest average Game Score of anybody in NBA Summer League.

Pritchard’s per game averages jumped off the page as he put up 16.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 8.5 assists. All of that production came on 47.8% from the field.

We saw a combination of range, handles, and on-ball creation that should translate to NBA success in year two. We probably won’t be seeing Pritchard in NBA Summer League again, and that’s a good thing.

WATCH: How has Boston’s Aaron Nesmith improved his game this offseason?

The Vanderbilt product was the Celtics’ most reliable player in Las Vegas Summer League.

The Boston Celtics need one of their recently drafted players to develop into a solid, reliable role player if they are to chase banners in all seriousness again. And with the growth we are seeing from second-year small forward Aaron Nesmith in Las Vegas Summer League, they may be on their way to seeing the South Carolina native fit that bill.

The summer Celtics’ leading scorer and most consistent player of Las Vegas Summer League, Nesmith managed to add some new wrinkles to his game while competing for hardware in the Sin City exhibition series, reflecting the level of potential Boston took him No. 14 overall in the 2020 NBA draft.

This growth caught the attention of the hosts of the CLNS Media podcasts “The A-List,” with A. Sherrod Blakely and Kwani A. Lunis discussing the Vanderbilt product’s steps forward as a player in their most recent podcast.

Watch the video embedded above to hear their takes on one of the Celtics’ more promising young players.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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WATCH: Was it a mistake for Boston’s Payton Pritchard to leave Las Vegas Summer League?

Pritchard was not the same when he returned – did he simply have an Off Night?

Did Boston Celtics second-year point guard Payton Pritchard make a mistake by leaving Las Vegas Summer League to go participate in a pro-am tournament in Portland, Oregon? The Celtics were on an absolute tear with him in their initial slate of games before the West Linn native took leave to go drop a boatload of points in the Oregonian exhibition series.

When he came back and convinced Boston’s coaching staff to re-insert him into the summer Celtics’ rotation, the same magic wasn’t there. Should he have simply stuck around if the goal was to win a summer league championship, or did Pritchard simply have an “Off Night”?

The hosts of the CLNS Media “A-List” podcast discussed this quandary on their latest episode, with Kwani A. Lunis and A. Sherrod Blakely debating whether Fast PP left SIn City too soon.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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