2009-10 Summer League Post Mordem

Caleb was able to get these guys play HARD. The results of the games were obviously important to him, and the guys really tried to win instead of showcase their individual talents. In the end the Blazers went 4-1 with the only loss coming in a close game where two 85+% FT shooters each missed a pair at the end of the 4th. I'm sure we had some of the fewest points allowed during summer league, even though we pushed the ball up the court a lot.

KPs draft philosophy seemed to be to draft players who play hard, and these guys did that.

MVP: Dante Cunningham: A- - generally very efficient. Smart, tough player. Still hasn't quite proved he's not a tweener on defense, but I think he will.

Most Consistent Player: Armon Johnson B+ - very reminiscent of Greg Anthony (minus the 3pt shooting). Won the PG battle against Mills in the minds of many, including me.

Others:
Pendergraph: C - Rebounded and defended well, but didn't show he could do more. Got his shot blocked a lot. His LVSL MVP aspirations show he doesn't understand the game yet. Future with the team a bit cloudy as he is a bit undersized.

Mills: Showed he has NBA speed and 3pt range. Poor decision-making and defense have doomed him in Portland, though.

Babbitt: Trying to figure out how to fit into the game offensively and defensively. Started to figure it out in the last two games. Needs more time to get comfortable, but showed NBA offensive ability. Last game was ridiculously good: 22 pts on 8 shots!

Elliot Williams: Incomplete, he did not play. Still intrigued by the 48" vertical though.

 

Overall it made me feel good about our draft. I don't see any stars in the draft, but I see Armon and Luke as deserving of their selections and both seem like good-fit players as well. Just what the doctor ordered.

 

I absolutely agree.

Here are the summer league standings, FWIW:
http://www.nba.com/summerleague2010/standings/

 

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/chris_mannix/07/16/vegas.notes/index.html

 

Who will watch?

 

Armon

 

Freeman wrap up video:
http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2010/07/video_joe_freeman_on_the_portl.html

 

ESPN Day 10 wrap-up:
http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/18369/day-10-las-vegas-summer-league-roundup

 

There are 3 kinds of players to replace. The purposes of Summer League are for each team to 1) identify weaknesses of its new guys so that set plays can be planned, 2) have the youngest players from the previous season work on their weaknesses, and 3) give tryouts to others to fill out the bottom of the roster.

In a lockout, players who have signed an NBA contract couldn't play, but about 3/4 of Summer League participants aren't under contract. I don't think the 3/4 would need to be replaced. The bottom 3/4 of the current league would still show up. So LaGarie must only be planning how to replace the vacant 1/4.

At first, I thought he'd have to replace a whole leagueful of players, but now, I imagine the change is simply to invite about 2 more D-Leaguers, and 1 more European, than the average roster already has.

 

They didn't play any harder than before, The difference was that Bayless wasn't there, hogging the ball and the attention of the most easily starstruck fans. Everyone else got to contribute, which made this a real team, instead of one man's self-showcase.

 

So let me guess, you'd rather have Armon Johnson then Bayless?

 

Yes.

 

^^^ Mistaken! And if this happens, we will be in big trouble!

 

Blazersedge has their review up:

http://www.blazersedge.com/2010/7/19/1576307/summer-league-2010-review

click the link for more info on individual players

 

Yes ! (Hey, better late than never.)

I'd rather have anyone, including Sergio, over Bayless. Sergio in his rookie year, that is, when he had confidence.

 

I have no idea how people are comparing Armon to Greg Anthony. What because he is 6'3" tall and went to school in Nevada? WTF? He isn't half the player Anthony was.

IMO all the guards who played on the summer league roster are not NBA worthy, and are projects at best.

 

That's just crazy talk. JB's PER was better, his WS/48 was twice as much as Sergio's best year as a Blazer, his TS% was better, he actually tried to play defense, and then came the playoffs - and he actually played better!

JB has his issues, for sure, but that Sergio talk is just silly.

 

In case you haven't been paying attention to current events, Sergio is not an NBA player anymore. Chances of 1 team making a mistake are good. The chances of 3 making a mistake, with one being NY who doesn't give a rats ass if you play defense? Zero.

 

Both solid defenders, left-handed, play a cerebral game.

I have no doubt that if Johnson would have stayed another year, he would have been drafted just as high as Anthony was.

I think at 21, its too soon to say that he is half the player that Anthony was.

 

In all seriousness, did you watch the SL games? The comparison to Greg Anthony (without the 3pt shot) seems pretty decent to me.