UM Bball NBA Summer League Recap 7/14
Trey struggled a bit with his shot, but did fill up the stat sheet in other ways. Otherwise, some great all-around and efficient play from Timmy, Nik, and Darius. Given the up and down style of the summer league, the most impressive stat may be the only 5 combined turnovers from the Bielien disciples.
T. Hardaway - 17 pts (6-12 fg), 4 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl, 1 to
N. Stauskas - 15 pts (6-8 fg), 3 reb, 2 ast, 2 to
D. Morris - 19 pts (7-12 fg), 4 reb, 4 ast, 1 to
T. Burke - 2 pts (0-6 fg), 6 reb, 6 ast, 1 stl, 1 to
GRob/JMo play at 4:30PM today and Trey plays again 8:30PM.
had an individual stat line on the ESPN headline banner this morning. It was awesome to see while working out at the gym today.
My way too early prediction is that Nik will end up being the best NBA player from that runner up squad (and it might not be close). Just watching him the other day...
He hit a corner 3 off a catch and shoot. He hit a 3 off the dribble in transition. He attacked the rim and scored, then on the very next possession he drove like he was going all the way to the rim, the D collapsed, and he pulled up and hit a mid range jumper.
He is going to be just fine in the NBA.
I think Mitch will be the best of the bunch - at least as long as he stays healthy. His size, skill set, and motor are a really unique combination - especially if he can keep hitting 17 footers like he did this past week. He'll also be a better defender than any of his fellow Wolverines (with the possible exception of GRIII).
Mitch would be my #2 guy. The problem Mitch faces is that as long as that team is constituted the way it is, he'll never be more than a 4th scoring option. KD, Westbrook, and Ibaka will always get more looks. He's also going to have to contend with Ibaka, Adams, and Perkins for minutes (although, Perk might not be there for long).
The Kings just let Isaiah Thomas walk, and Ben McLemore has been nothing but terrible, which means Stauskas will likely be the 3rd option right off the bat. With only 1 more year of Rudy Gay, he could quickly move into that #2 spot.
I just think he's going to have more of an opportunity to flourish, while Mitch is going to be pigeonholed to an extent. That's not to say he couldn't develop into a great big or end up the best, he certainly has the talent.
Unfortunately, even if Stauskas is great on the Kings, no one will ever know about it.
I'll go Caris-Nik-Mitch-Tim bunched up then Trey then GR3
Trey needs to be making a leap similar to his sophomore year in college.
Wayyyyyyy too early prediction: He is never able to recreate his magic in college at the NBA level. Very, very solid backup point guard on a contender some day.
It was an extremely weak season for rookies. Trey's play last year was fine for a rookie, but below average for an NBA player. He'll need to improve to stay in the league very long, and certainly to stay a starter. I expect he will.
That is like being the 3rd prettiest girl in hunchback village. It was possibly the worst rookie class of all time. He finished 3rd in rookie of the year voting, and was probably 3rd best in terms of raw numbers. However, based on production, you could make a case that Timmy and Mason Plumlee both had better seasons, they just weren't afforded the minutes like Trey.
All you really need to know is that the Jazz turned right around and drafted another point guard this year, even though they already have Burke and Alec Burks
If Trey wants to stick around in the league, let alone continue to be a starting point guard, he has to dramatically improve his offensive efficiency. He can't continue shooting 38% from the field and 33% from deep.
The fact that he has looked terrible thus far in summer league (6.5ppg 22%fg 14%3pt) even though he should be a veteran at this point, tearing it up like most 2nd year players, is kind of frightening. I mean, a thing on the Jazz named "Brock Motum" has scored 7 more points than Burke through 2 games.
Trey is already behind the 8-ball due to his lack of size and athleticism compared to other NBA point guards, so he needs to make smart decisions with the basketball and play with a great deal of offensive efficiency. Thus far in his (ableit young) career he has really struggled to do that.
Oh ya at 21 years of age (22 in November) time is just running out for old man Trey.
I said it was way too early. And I love me some Trey Burke - will never forget what he did for us. The run to the national championship game is my favorite "memory" of Michigan sports that I was able to be there for.
He was OK last year as a rookie in one the weakest classes ever. Still, top 5 so not bad. Then Utah drafted another Point Guard that everyone regards as a total stud. And then the summer league happens, where again - the talent is suspect at best and guys like THJ are ripping it up.
Anyway - way too early. Way, way too early.
It was not your waaaay too early prediction that made me salty. It was your contention that he needs to make a growth move in his 2nd year in the NBA as he did at Michigan where he made player of the year. Asking trey to be the MVP of the league in year two is a bit much considering it is the freaking NBA.
I'm pretty sure the TWolves have already given up on J-Mo. I watched their first game and he got absolutely blown up. 0-3 and 2 of his shots were blocked. He just doesn't have the size or athleticism to compete. They didn't even play him in their 2nd game.
GRIII has been his normally non-assertive self from what I've seen. He has the same number of field goal attempts as non-offensive weapon Gorgui Dieng (not to mention fewer points).
Not looking good for either of those guys.
I wouldn't give up on GRIII (not that you are). The T-Wolves starters include three of the ball hoggingest ball hogs who ever hogged the ball. Robinson has managed to show a decent all-around game despite almost never being set up for anything on offense.
Another daily reminder that Minnesota has drafted 3425465 point guards over the last handful of years but somehow doesn't have anyone who can play point on their summer league roster.
Good to see Darius Morris have such a fine stat line. I am curious with hindsight if he would have chose to stay another year. I will always appreciate his staunch defense of the home court and his passionate personal expression of such.
Although it's entitled "Morris Making Plays"
it's also Morris making quotes: "The culture here is... very distinguished."
So far, this is what our guys are averaging:
THJ - 20.7 pts, 3 rebs, 1.7 assists
Mitch - 12.3 pts, 5.8 rebs, 1.3 assists
Nik - 13 pts, 1.7 rebs, 2 assists
Trey - 6.5 pts, 5 rebs, 5 assists
DMo - 12.3 pts, 3.7 rebs, 3.3 assists
GR3 - 7.5 pts, 4.5 rebs
JMo - 2 pts, 1 rebound (didn't count second game, he did not play)
That was what I was looking for from him in the Knicks SL games I've watched. We know he can score, but can he do all of the other stuff so that he's not totally useless when his shot isn't falling? So far, at least from what I've seen, he's improved at contributing all around. He still has room for improvement (evidenced by the black hole game against Portland), but he has been getting after it more on both sides of the court.