Tag: 2024 Summer League

Report: Lakers sign Thunder summer league center Kylor Kelley

Report: Lakers sign Thunder summer league center Kylor Kelley.

The Oklahoma City Thunder entered the summer league with a chance to see their rookies for the first time in action in Dillon Jones and Ajay Mitchell. It also provided a chance for others on the roster to show out.

The multi-week event helps undrafted gems and G League players leave notable impressions for the rest of the NBA. One player that reaped the benefits of that was center Kylor Kelley.

The 26-year-old has played in the G League and overseas since being undrafted in 2020 out of Oregon State. He spent last season with the Maine Celtics, who lost to the OKC Blue in the 2024 G League Finals.

Kelley signed with the Blue’s summer league squad and started a handful of contests at center. He must’ve played well as the Los Angeles Lakers reportedly signed him to an Exhibit 10 deal.

This allows the Lakers to own Kelley’s G League rights and he should see plenty of action next season with the South Bay Lakers. He’s the latest example of the Thunder aiding an undrafted player into a new deal.

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Boring Summer League another sign Thunder have arrived

Boring Summer League another sign Thunder have arrived.

By the time the Oklahoma City Thunder arrived in Utah, it was evident this year’s summer league wouldn’t have the same pizzazz as previous offseasons.

The Thunder’s offense struggled and went 1-4 in Las Vegas. By the last handful of contests, OKC’s roster looked closer to the G League’s Blue than the actual Thunder.

Alas, such is the life of the youngest first-seed in league history.

Gone are the days when Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren participated in the event they were too good to play in. Instead, Thunder fans will have to quench their basketball thirst with a handful of contests from Ousmane Dieng and Dillon Jones.

This led to an uneventful multi-week extravaganza spread across Utah and Las Vegas. Among the 30 NBA teams, the Thunder ranked near the bottom of spectacularness.

That comes with the territory of being an NBA championship contender. The Thunder no longer possess the number of prized prospects they had in previous draft cycles.

But thanks to the number of possible future draft picks they own from other squads — particularly the LA Clippers and Houston Rockets — that might change soon.

Next summer league will garner more excitement with the debut of Nikola Topic, who will miss next season dealing with a torn ACL. But even with that as the headliner, it’s difficult to see the Thunder recapture the magic from the last couple of summer league events.

The Thunder will no longer be viewed as a main attraction by the NBA world during the July extravaganza. The interest level was notably down this year. That was clear when crowds in OKC SL games were roughly half the size of the last couple of years.

It also showed on social media. The closer the Thunder were to the end of summer league, the fewer reactions there were by fans online. It was a ghost town on X, formerly known as Twitter. OKC’s subreddit didn’t even have a game thread or postgame discussion for the latter half of the exhibitions.

But that is a worthy price to pay to enter a championship window. The Thunder won’t conjure a self-made lottery pick for the foreseeable future barring health.

Instead, expect several deep playoff runs manned by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren and Williams. All three were once major summer league attractions in the early stages of their careers. They now attend the event as spectators.

Such is the life cycle of an NBA franchise. The Thunder have graduated from a rebuilding squad with promising pieces. They are now one of the best teams in the league with massive expectations.

There’s no real downside to being in this portion of a franchise’s life cycle, but it makes an otherwise fun event feel forgettable for Thunder fans.

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Chet Holmgren supports Bronny James after summer league performance

Chet Holmgren supports Bronny James after solid summer league performance.

Arguably the biggest storyline centered around this year’s summer league event is Bronny James. The 19-year-old was controversially selected with the No. 55 pick of the 2024 NBA draft.

The polarizing draft pick caused people to scream nepotism. Many thought the Los Angeles Lakers selected James because of his father LeBron James.

After a poor freshman campaign at USC, James had a rough start to his summer league stint. He failed to make a 3-pointer in several contests. Recently though, he’s played better.

In the Lakers’ summer league win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, the 19-year-old had his best outing of the July event. He totaled 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting, five rebounds and three assists.

Chet Holmgren went on social media to praise the second-round rookie. He said he looked like a professional basketball player. There have been questions about James’ abilities to be an actual NBA player.

He’s undersized as a guard at 6-foot-1 and had a forgettable college season coming off the bench for a bad Trojans squad. A health scare is also another cause for concern. He suffered a cardiac arrest in July 2023.

Amid national scrutiny, James seems to have a supporter in Holmgren. The 19-year-old will likely receive plenty of time in the spotlight next season with the Lakers.

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Almost entire Thunder squad show out to support OKC in summer league loss to Heat

Almost entire Thunder squad show out to support OKC in summer league loss to Heat.

During the Oklahoma City Thunder’s summer league contest against the Miami Heat, players from the main roster started to trickle into the seats.

Nearly the entire squad attended the Thunder’s loss to the Heat in Las Vegas. This comes a game after several key members supported OKC in its loss to the Toronto Raptors.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault and Thunder owner Clay Bennett were also in attendance.

As the Thunder ascend to title contenders, summer league becomes more of an afterthought than the main attraction of the offseason. All of OKC’s top players sat out the offseason event this year.

This explains why the Thunder have had a forgettable SL stint. Even though the entertainment factor has lost its attractiveness, it’s a healthy sign of where OKC stands at its core.

The only notable absences were Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort and Alex Caruso. The first two are busy with Canada’s preparation for the 2024 Olympics.

This goes to show how tight-knit the Thunder are. They spent part of the offseason supporting their new teammates Dillon Jones and Ajay Mitchell.

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Several Thunder players attend OKC’s summer league loss to Raptors

Several Thunder players attend OKC’s summer league loss to Raptors.

After three games in Utah, the Oklahoma City Thunder flew to Las Vegas to join the rest of the league for the more traditional summer league.

They were flat in their first contest with a 94-69 loss to the Toronto Raptors, but several Thunder players were in attendance for the showing.

Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace and Isaiah Hartenstein made their way to their seats to watch their teammates play. The Thunder have a pair of rookies in the contests with Dillon Jones and Ajay Mitchell.

Jones finished with 17 points on 7-of-15 shooting, seven rebounds and two assists in 29 minutes. He shot 2-of-4 from 3.

Mitchell tallied 15 points on 6-of-18 shooting, three assists, three rebounds and three steals in 30 minutes. He shot 2-of-5 from 3.

“It was crazy because I didn’t really notice them until the end of the game,” Jones said on his teammates’ presence. “It’s crazy those are technically my teammates and brothers now. It’s still a crazy feeling because of their stature and who they are as players.”

Holmgren and Williams get to enjoy summer league from the sidelines this year. Both participated in the event for the last two years. They’ve graduated from the July exhibitions.

The Thunder have a few more games left in their summer league schedule. Holmgren and Williams used the first contest in Las Vegas to support their new teammates.

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Chet Holmgren talks about pairing up with Isaiah Hartenstein on Thunder

Chet Holmgren talks about pairing up with Isaiah Hartenstein on Thunder.

The Oklahoma City Thunder landed a big fish this offseason when they convinced Isaiah Hartenstein to ditch the New York Knicks for a three-year, $87 million deal.

The 26-year-old immediately shores up weaknesses for OKC in size and rebounds. He also adds another dimension to the Thunder they previously didn’t have as a traditional center.

When Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren are on the court together, the Thunder will have two of the best paint protectors in the league roaming around and deterring drivers to the basket.

In attendance to support his new teammates, Holmgren talked about the possibilities of the double-big lineup. He played it safe with his response.

“We don’t know what we’ll look like,” Holmgren said in an interview with NBA TV. “We’re gonna figure out how to be the best version of ourselves for sure.”

The 22-year-old kept his excitement hidden but paired up with Hartenstein is the perfect fit for the two centers. The Thunder fortified a weakness and now have one of the best backup centers in the league.

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Thunder coach Daniel Dixon discusses summer league opportunity

Thunder coach Daniel Dixon discusses summer league opportunity.

Summer league is meant for experimentation. That doesn’t just stop on the court though for rookies and bubble NBA players trying to earn their next contract. It also applies to coaches during the July event.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have made the most of the summer extravaganza. They’ve split the head coaching duties since participating in two summer leagues in Utah and Las Vegas.

Blue head coach Kam Woods was the head coach for Utah’s three games. Blue assistant Daniel Dixon will be handed the baton in the more traditional SL at Las Vegas.

The 30-year-old began his coaching career in 2020. He had a brief pro career from 2017-20 overseas and in the G League after he went undrafted. He spent four college seasons at Wiliam & Mary.

Dixon has spent the last two seasons as a Blue assistant. He offered his thoughts on what type of coach he is in his first media availability on Friday.

“I think I just like to bring a lot of energy, and the biggest thing is focusing on development because I think that’s the biggest passion that I have,” Dixon said. “To help these guys get to where they want to get in the most delicate time of their careers.”

Considering Ousmane Dieng will sit out the rest of the summer event, more eyes will be on Dixon to see how he conducts himself as a head coach on the sidelines.

“It’s amazing, I’m extremely grateful,” Dixon said. “It’s like a dream. I’m really grateful that the organization put me in this position and they’re constantly investing in my development, which is a great thing.”

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Ousmane Dieng to sit out remainder of 2024 Summer League

Ousmane Dieng to sit out remainder of 2024 Summer League.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will sit out third-year forward Ousmane Deing for the remainder of the 2024 summer league, per head coach Daniel Dixon. This was always the plan for OKC.

Dieng concludes his third summer league stint with mixed results. He played all three games at Utah from July 8-10. He averaged 15.7 points on 34.6% shooting, six assists and five rebounds. He shot 40% from 3 on 6.7 attempts.

This is a little bit of a surprising decision but aligns with how the Thunder usually handle the Utah and Las Vegas split of their summer league tenure these last couple of years.

They prioritize the former for their prized players while the latter is more about letting the end-of-roster players get playing time. Dieng was one of the headliners of this year’s SL squad for OKC.

The 21-year-old is in his most important offseason yet. This season will essentially decide his future with the Thunder. After two years of development in the background, it’s time for Dieng to be an actual rotation piece next season.

If not, it could spell the end of Dieng’s tenure with the Thunder. He was viewed as a long-term project when he was selected with the No. 11 pick of the 2022 NBA draft.

The Thunder have at least four games left in the summer league from July 13-19. They could participate in more contests if they make the SL playoffs in Las Vegas.

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Jack Gohlke scores 3-pointer in summer league debut for OKC Thunder

Jack Gohlke scores 3-pointer in summer league debut for OKC Thunder.

One of the highlights of the Oklahoma City Thunder’s stay in Utah for summer league was the pro debut of Oakland’s Jack Gohlke.

The 24-year-old became a household name after he led Oakland to an upset win over Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament. He went undrafted but signed with the Thunder on their SL roster.

In his sole season at Oakland, Gohlke averaged 10.3 3-point attempts. 364 of his 372 attempts were from deep.

In the Thunder’s blowout win over the Utah Jazz, Gohlke checked in for the final four minutes and nailed his lone 3-point attempt.

Gohlke’s sole bucket occurred after he slid to a sidestep 3-pointer. A pump-fake had Kyle Filipowski in the air and the undrafted rookie splashed in the outside shot. It was about as perfect as a first bucket anybody could’ve dreamed of.

The 24-year-old will likely see more action as summer league progresses. He’ll make an otherwise forgettable second half of SL into must-watch television.

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OKC Thunder announces 2024 Summer League roster

OKC Thunder announces 2024 Summer League roster.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have announced their 2024 summer league roster on Sunday. They will play at least seven games from July 8-19. They could play as late as July 22 if they qualify for the event’s playoffs.

OKC will participate in the Salt Lake City summer league from July 8-10 and the traditional Las Vegas summer league from July 13-19 at the very least. The full schedule for both events can be read here.

Blue head coach Kam Woods will lead the Utah squad while Blue assistant Daniel Dixon will lead the Vegas squad.

The 18-player roster is filled with third-year vets, two-way players, rookies, undrafted free agents and G League players. The full Thunder summer league roster is:

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Ousmane Dieng and Dillon Jones headline the roster. The former will participate in his third straight summer league. The latter headlines OKC’s rookie class among healthy players.

Keyontae Johnson is also another notable name on the roster. He had his rights renounced by the Thunder recently, which makes him an unrestricted free agent. This came after a redshirt rookie campaign last year as the 24-year-old spent most of the season in the G League.

The Thunder’s top rookie Nikola Topic is left off this summer’s event. The 18-year-old slid to the No. 12 spot as he recovers from a partially torn ACL.

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