After a brief hiatus, there are a ton of reasons why the basketball world was glad to have Las Vegas Summer League back on the schedule.
While summer league was unfortunately canceled in 2020, the even took place once again this year. Fans have already seen star rookies such as Cade Cunningham and Jalen Green make their pro debuts. They have also seen LiAngelo Ball play particularly well for the Charlotte Hornets.
But as noted by Derek Murray, one of the main benefits of summer league is that NBA teams can allow their younger role players to get more reps on the ball. Players who are typically off-ball shooters or slashers may get the nod to initiate offense for their squad.
Summer League is for testing which of your secondary creators can run point.
— Derek Murray (@dmurrayNBA) August 13, 2021
Below, we have outlined some of the players around the league who have made the most of their opportunity as the primary creator for their teams in summer league action.
Although these players may not be afforded such looks during NBA action because they’re surrounded by more star power during the regular season, it is incredibly helpful for their long-term development and gives teams a sense of what these players can eventually become.
Note that all player roles are defined by their play-type usage based on the offensive archetype definitions provided by BBall-Index.com. All stats are pulled from Synergy Sports Tech unless specifically noted otherwise.