Summer League: Vegas baby, vegas.

[Saberestar]

Jackson is older than Chriss and Bender by about 6 months, didn't know that before.

I checked today, only 11 players (I think) who were drafted are younger than Bender, and 3 of those are within a week of his age. So he's still one of the youngest guys in the league, as is Chriss. Like Miyagi's sig says, I don't think we should judge them too much too quickly.

This is cool, but I don't think that 6 months up or down are a big difference. I know that he is young, but his playing is a big concern.
Can he improve? Of course, that is what we all want to see, but right now he looks to be two years away from being two years away.

One of the biggest problems to me is that he plays the game like he is 6'6 guy...but in the bad way. He is not a presence around the rim AT ALL. He is 7'1 and he is allergic to the paint. He is big enough to make some things there but he doesn't have the moves or the mentality to go inside and fight.

I know that is Summer League and bla bla bla, but at the end of the day is basketball against pros. I want to see an improvement and flashes of potential. I like his post defense but I want more. I was really high about him, but I have lowered my expectations a lot because of his play.

I agree that we need to give him more time to develop, but we are here to talk about the games and the players, so I give my impression about his playing NOW. It would be great if he improves and he becomes a legit starter before his rookie contract ends.

[Skillmatic]

Really want to see the game from yesterday. Where can i see it?need help. Please

Sent from my SM-T800 using RealGM mobile app

[DaleyBlind]

HAs McDo assembled a round hole square peg team ? Who will be our shooters. You need shooters in the big leagues. Is our season going to hinge upon Bender, Warren, and Chris finding their shot?

This is concerning. We have virtually zero offense form the C spot, inconsistent offense form the PF spot, a junk man at SF, chuck happy SG, and a rock pounding PG. We add to that a miss mash bench led by a chubby old SF who can shoot 3s, a new high energy brick layer, an unconfident young euro who we are begging to improve and a diminutive guard that seems to make every one better... or is it less worse?

Going to be a long year if this roster sticks.

I think its pretty clear it will be another tanking year. Top 5 pick is a certainty

[Frank Lee]

Really want to see the game from yesterday. Where can i see it?need help. Please

Sent from my SM-T800 using RealGM mobile app

I dont think it is available. McDo bought the film and burned it

Good observation about Bender Saber. Just once Id like to see him thunder-dunk on someone. His aggression level is as wispy as his new chin fuzz.

[sunsbum]

If you have any expectations of Bender being anything other than a super role player IE Andre Iguodala then you have no one but yourself to blame. When a guy self admitted models himself after Tonic Kukoc you should know what you're getting. In my opinion when the dust settles you will see Booker and Ulis as the two main scorers on our team with everyone else falling in line around them.

[bwgood77]

If you have any expectations of Bender being anything other than a super role player IE Andre Iguodala then you have no one but yourself to blame. When a guy self admitted models himself after Tonic Kukoc you should know what you're getting. In my opinion when the dust settles you will see Booker and Ulis as the two main scorers on our team with everyone else falling in line around them.

I don't see Ulis as much of a scorer. He hasn't been much of a shooter yet, that's for sure.

[bwgood77]

Jackson is older than Chriss and Bender by about 6 months, didn't know that before.

I checked today, only 11 players (I think) who were drafted are younger than Bender, and 3 of those are within a week of his age. So he's still one of the youngest guys in the league, as is Chriss. Like Miyagi's sig says, I don't think we should judge them too much too quickly.

This is cool, but I don't think that 6 months up or down are a big difference. I know that he is young, but his playing is a big concern.
Can he improve? Of course, that is what we all want to see, but right now he looks to be two years away from being two years away.

One of the biggest problems to me is that he plays the game like he is 6'6 guy...but in the bad way. He is not a presence around the rim AT ALL. He is 7'1 and he is allergic to the paint. He is big enough to make some things there but he doesn't have the moves or the mentality to go inside and fight.

I know that is Summer League and bla bla bla, but at the end of the day is basketball against pros. I want to see an improvement and flashes of potential. I like his post defense but I want more. I was really high about him, but I have lowered my expectations a lot because of his play.

I agree that we need to give him more time to develop, but we are here to talk about the games and the players, so I give my impression about his playing NOW. It would be great if he improves and he becomes a legit starter before his rookie contract ends.

It would be nice to see him better on offense, and those are the areas he is lacking, but he still plays a nice utility role in most other aspects, whether it be defensively or moving the ball. He is always looking for the open guy and he plays smart defensively and his length is really disruptive on the perimeter. I imagine his offense will improve over time and like mentioned, hopefully he focuses less on the 3 ball.

[sunsbum]

If you have any expectations of Bender being anything other than a super role player IE Andre Iguodala then you have no one but yourself to blame. When a guy self admitted models himself after Tonic Kukoc you should know what you're getting. In my opinion when the dust settles you will see Booker and Ulis as the two main scorers on our team with everyone else falling in line around them.

I don't see Ulis as much of a scorer. He hasn't been much of a shooter yet, that's for sure.

that's the only hole in his game is 3pt shooting right now. Ulis also avg almost 18ppg at Kentucky....Kentucky. He's definitely a scorer.

[rsavaj]

so he's exactly like Bender

good case of two people watching the same thing but seeing different things

the reason I'm excited about Dragan is because he projects as a pretty good defender to me; I value his defensive agility(and switchability) a lot. He did an okay job defending the perimeter on Friday, and he fared really well in the post too. He can't stay in front of DSJ today, but then again, few in this league can.

Even if his offensive game never progresses(which would be a real shame, but I think it's highly unlikely considering he's still a teenager), Bender looks like a guy who slide into any rotation and make a positive contribution

So basically he's looking more and more like say, Andre Roberson.

That's ok and that's a rotation player like you said but the expectation for a top 4 pick should be much higher than that.

I think Roberson is is floor.

Roberson with a 3 point shot would be a lethal player. We have to hope Bender's J develops.

[TOO]

HAs McDo assembled a round hole square peg team ? Who will be our shooters. You need shooters in the big leagues. Is our season going to hinge upon Bender, Warren, and Chris finding their shot?

This is concerning. We have virtually zero offense form the C spot, inconsistent offense form the PF spot, a junk man at SF, chuck happy SG, and a rock pounding PG. We add to that a miss mash bench led by a chubby old SF who can shoot 3s, a new high energy brick layer, an unconfident young euro who we are begging to improve and a diminutive guard that seems to make every one better... or is it less worse?

Going to be a long year if this roster sticks.

I think its pretty clear it will be another tanking year. Top 5 pick is a certainty

Is it tanking if your team just sucks? We arent losing on purpose, we'll just be bad. This team still can't shoot, the defense SHOULD improve though.

[TOO]

good case of two people watching the same thing but seeing different things

the reason I'm excited about Dragan is because he projects as a pretty good defender to me; I value his defensive agility(and switchability) a lot. He did an okay job defending the perimeter on Friday, and he fared really well in the post too. He can't stay in front of DSJ today, but then again, few in this league can.

Even if his offensive game never progresses(which would be a real shame, but I think it's highly unlikely considering he's still a teenager), Bender looks like a guy who slide into any rotation and make a positive contribution

So basically he's looking more and more like say, Andre Roberson.

That's ok and that's a rotation player like you said but the expectation for a top 4 pick should be much higher than that.

I think Roberson is is floor.

Roberson with a 3 point shot would be a lethal player. We have to hope Bender's J develops.

I dont see the Roberson thing, JJ can pass and handle the ball, he drives aggressively to the rim. Roberson is strictly a defender and nothing else.

[bwgood77]

If you have any expectations of Bender being anything other than a super role player IE Andre Iguodala then you have no one but yourself to blame. When a guy self admitted models himself after Tonic Kukoc you should know what you're getting. In my opinion when the dust settles you will see Booker and Ulis as the two main scorers on our team with everyone else falling in line around them.

I don't see Ulis as much of a scorer. He hasn't been much of a shooter yet, that's for sure.

that's the only hole in his game is 3pt shooting right now. Ulis also avg almost 18ppg at Kentucky....Kentucky. He's definitely a scorer.

Well, scoring in the crappy SEC is a lot easier than scoring in the NBA. Plus he was the only real option other than Jamal Murray since Skal barely played. He might be able to score ok but I don't expect him to be our #2 go to guy or scorer. If TJ sticks around he will likely always score more than Ulis on average.

[bwgood77]

HAs McDo assembled a round hole square peg team ? Who will be our shooters. You need shooters in the big leagues. Is our season going to hinge upon Bender, Warren, and Chris finding their shot?

This is concerning. We have virtually zero offense form the C spot, inconsistent offense form the PF spot, a junk man at SF, chuck happy SG, and a rock pounding PG. We add to that a miss mash bench led by a chubby old SF who can shoot 3s, a new high energy brick layer, an unconfident young euro who we are begging to improve and a diminutive guard that seems to make every one better... or is it less worse?

Going to be a long year if this roster sticks.

I think its pretty clear it will be another tanking year. Top 5 pick is a certainty

Is it tanking if your team just sucks? We arent losing on purpose, we'll just be bad. This team still can't shoot, the defense SHOULD improve though.

No, it's not, but many just equate being bad or being bad because you are young with tanking these days. Though if you are not signing "win now" players than you can say management's approach is not trying to win now, which could be called tanking, at least as far as management is concerned.

[Revived]

So basically he's looking more and more like say, Andre Roberson.

That's ok and that's a rotation player like you said but the expectation for a top 4 pick should be much higher than that.

I think Roberson is is floor.

Roberson with a 3 point shot would be a lethal player. We have to hope Bender's J develops.

I dont see the Roberson thing, JJ can pass and handle the ball, he drives aggressively to the rim. Roberson is strictly a defender and nothing else.

We're not talking about JJ, we're talking about Bender.

[Preacherpj]

http://www.espn.com/blog/nba/post/_/id/22658/devin-booker-emerges-as-summer-league-standout

Some of what makes Booker special can be seen in his attitude towards the SL games he played in last year.

Despite being a first-team all-rookie selection last season, he doesn’t view summer league as beneath him. The common fears that hold other young players back from playing in summer league -- such as underperforming on a big stage or risking injury -- don’t concern him, either.

“That’s my work ethic,” Booker said. “I stay in the gym. I don’t want last season to be known as a fluke season or something that happened just because of injuries. Every time I step on the floor, I always feel like I have something to prove. I’m trying to win, most importantly.”

“But every time I step on the floor, I want to be the best player.”

I think both Chriss and Bender could use a dose of that mentality. I did think Bender started the game with a little more fire, he had two ORBDs in the first couple mins, that was good to see.

[Preacherpj]

http://www.espn.com/blog/nba/post/_/id/22658/devin-booker-emerges-as-summer-league-standout

Some of what makes Booker special can be seen in his attitude towards the SL games he played in last year.

Despite being a first-team all-rookie selection last season, he doesn’t view summer league as beneath him. The common fears that hold other young players back from playing in summer league -- such as underperforming on a big stage or risking injury -- don’t concern him, either.

“That’s my work ethic,” Booker said. “I stay in the gym. I don’t want last season to be known as a fluke season or something that happened just because of injuries. Every time I step on the floor, I always feel like I have something to prove. I’m trying to win, most importantly.”

“But every time I step on the floor, I want to be the best player.”

I think both Chriss and Bender could use a dose of that mentality. I did think Bender started the game with a little more fire, he had two ORBDs in the first couple mins, that was good to see.

[alldayeveryday]

Still hungover but figured I share some photos of SL -

[sunsbum]

http://www.espn.com/blog/nba/post/_/id/22658/devin-booker-emerges-as-summer-league-standout

Some of what makes Booker special can be seen in his attitude towards the SL games he played in last year.

Despite being a first-team all-rookie selection last season, he doesn’t view summer league as beneath him. The common fears that hold other young players back from playing in summer league -- such as underperforming on a big stage or risking injury -- don’t concern him, either.

“That’s my work ethic,” Booker said. “I stay in the gym. I don’t want last season to be known as a fluke season or something that happened just because of injuries. Every time I step on the floor, I always feel like I have something to prove. I’m trying to win, most importantly.”

“But every time I step on the floor, I want to be the best player.”

I think both Chriss and Bender could use a dose of that mentality. I did think Bender started the game with a little more fire, he had two ORBDs in the first couple mins, that was good to see.

Just because bender isnt playing up to your standards doesnt mean he isnt trying. I can see why you would say this about chriss.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

I don't hold the Knight trade against McD too strongly. And not hitting on Len is okay; nobody's perfect. I like how he's done with 2nd rounders - Ulis, Reed - and undrafted players - Williams, Jones Jr.

But if neither Bender nor Chriss pans out... that would be a big deal. We need one of these guys - Len, Bender, Chriss - to be an impact player. If none of them do, McD's on my personal hot seat. I couldn't tell who among Bender, Chriss, Sabonis or Brice Johnson (!) was the best PF available at #4 last year, but I gave McD the benefit of the doubt. Well, he took two bites at that apple. So I need to see that at least one of these guys was a good pick; otherwise, I'll start to have real doubt about this front office.

Edit: Indulging myself a bit here... I will always give McD high marks overall, because I've believed and continue to believe in his general approach. But the thing you can't do when you rebuild this way is fail to build around your talent. I think Ulis/Booker/Jackson has tremendous potential as a trio, and I give kudos to Ryan for assembling it. And his bigs selections have all been... the right idea, you know? And isn't that just the best you can do?

At some point, when we try to shift toward contention, we will have the opportunity to use trades and free agency to add the impact big we will need if neither Dragan nor Marquese pan out. But it sure would be a lot easier if to climb championship mountain if they do.

In my estimation, McD will have at least two more draft selections to make as GM of this club. Hopefully more. Hopefully these players can come together and win games. I'll keep cheering.

[ATTL]

I will be disappointed if the kids dont play well against the rockets.