Wolves Summer League Thread

[kekgeek]

Quick thoughts on the game

Really fun game and great comeback from the wolves. Once again this team plays like a team, they are really good SL team. I have liked watching them play.

Okogie: Probably his best game but still bad on offense. I do think he gets better when around better players because he doesn't need to create offense. On the normal roster he can focus on his strengths and focus and not on his weaknesses but he will need to hit open 3s in the NBA. Disappointing no real improvement with the ball in his hand.

KBD: Just so smooth, in my opinion he is a rotation player in the NBA. Long and methodical to his game.

Reid: Had a double double, I beg him to get in shape because he is good, he is an NBA player and he has a chance to be more than that if he wants it, big question will be does he want it.

Martin: Want him to be our 2-way guy

McLaughlin: Really good player, put close to triple double numbers, he is small but solid basketball player.

Murphy: I love murph and happy he is playing well. Before the summer league I said 0% chance he will be a NBA player, now I think he has a chance to make a squad one day. Curious if he could bully legit NBA players though, but like with the Gophers his best skill is his hands.

Herro; Was damn good early, seems like a really good player, became a ghost in the 4th quarter.

[Lipoli390]

Quick thoughts on the game

Really fun game and great comeback from the wolves. Once again this team plays like a team, they are really good SL team. I have liked watching them play.

Okogie: Probably his best game but still bad on offense. I do think he gets better when around better players because he doesn't need to create offense. On the normal roster he can focus on his strengths and focus and not on his weaknesses but he will need to hit open 3s in the NBA. Disappointing no real improvement with the ball in his hand.

KBD: Just so smooth, in my opinion he is a rotation player in the NBA. Long and methodical to his game.

Reid: Had a double double, I beg him to get in shape because he is good, he is an NBA player and he has a chance to be more than that if he wants it, big question will be does he want it.

Martin: Want him to be our 2-way guy

McLaughlin: Really good player, put close to triple double numbers, he is small but solid basketball player.

Murphy: I love murph and happy he is playing well. Before the summer league I said 0% chance he will be a NBA player, now I think he has a chance to make a squad one day. Curious if he could bully legit NBA players though, but like with the Gophers his best skill is his hands.

Herro; Was damn good early, seems like a really good player, became a ghost in the 4th quarter.

I didn't watch today's game yet. But your observations track my following three takes on the three games I saw live in Vegas.

1. KBD has been the Wolves best player in summer league - long, smooth, skilled and smart. He's improved as you would expect him to after a season in the NBA and he is definitely an NBA rotation player.

2. Reid has the potential to be special. He's already really good. If he gets his body fat down from over 14% to around 8% (top of the typical NBA range), he can become great as he refines his skills and learns the NBA game.

3. Martin and McLaughlin are the two keepers among the unsigned member of the summer league squad. One of them should get the other two-way deal and the other should get the 15th roster spot on the team.

Some other take-always for me:

1. I like Mitch Creek's effort, but there are better players on other summer league teams more deserving of an NBA roster spot or a 2-way contract.

2. Jared Terrell is putrid. I didn't like him in last year's summer league and I like him even less this summer. I don't want to see him anywhere near the Wolves roster or the Wolves G-League roster for that matter.

3. Love what I saw from coach Paglioni. The style of play, the competence and the team chemistry were all reflections of some really good coaching. Paglioni was fun to watch on the bench. He has a real command of the bench, is a really clear communicator and has a really positive vibe.

[crazy-canuck [enjin:18955461]]

I always see a bigger version of tatum whenever i see kbd play.

Im also a little disappointed in okogie. With culver out, i thought hed be able to dominate the ball and be more of an initiator and attack the rim.

[Lipoli390]

Here's a list of the summer league players team by team who impressed me in the games I saw live in Vegas. I haven't looked at any box scores or player stats, so this list is based entirely on my observations of their play. Since I didn't see all the teams play live, some players like Tyler Herro will be notably absent from my list. And some teams I saw didn't have any players who impressed me.

Hornets: Dwayne Bacon and Robert Franks
Bulls: Coby White, Michael Mulder
Pistons: Matt Costello, Jarrod Uthoff, Deividas Sirvydis, Svia Mykhailiuk, Khyri Thomas
Pacers: Brian Bowen II, Aaron Holiday
Lakers: Zach Norvell Jr., Dakota Mathias
Bucks: Elijah Bryant, Sterling Brown
Pelicans: Zion Williamson, Frank Jackson
Knicks: Kevin Knox, Alonzo Trier
OKC: Luguentz Dort, Hamidou Diallo, Devon Hall
Sixers: Zhaire Smith, Matisse Thybulle, PJ Dozier
Spurs: Lonnie Walker, Luka Samanic
Hawks: Spellman, Bruno Fernando

Among these players, the ones who impressed me the most were Lonnie Walker, Zhaire Smith, Matisse Thybulle, Matt Costello, Luguentz, Dort, and Frank Jackson.

I'm currently watching the recording of today's Miami game. I get why Cam has been so high on Tyler Herro. Very smooth. A much better ballhandler than I thought. And what a sweet shot. Naz continues to impress me. He has a high skill level with some very nice footwork and nifty nimble moves. He also has a high basketball IQ as well as toughness -- two qualities on display when he took that charge late in the 4th quarter. He could turn out to be the steal of the draft except for the fact he wasn't drafted. :)

[Hicks123 [enjin:6700838]]

I'm currently watching the recording of today's Miami game. I get why Cam has been so high on Tyler Herro. Very smooth. A much better ballhandler than I thought. And what a sweet shot. Naz continues to impress me. He has a high skill level with some very nice footwork and nifty nimble moves. He also has a high basketball IQ as well as toughness -- two qualities on display when he took that charge late in the 4th quarter. He could turn out to be the steal of the draft except for the fact he wasn't drafted. :)

I think the thing that makes or breaks Herro is whether or not he can adequately play PG in the NBA. When the season starts, if playing SG, it gets a ton tougher to get shots off with his body type. BUT, if he can play adequate minutes at PG, that changes things for him. In the highlights I watched, like Lip said, he has solid handles, thus playing some PG seems feasible.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I like Reid and definitely am rooting for him. He could be a valuable piece to us in the future, but he is absolutely not ready to contribute yet at the big league level. He often struggles to finish plays near the rim and seems to lack "small area quickness". He's not going to just be able to get his own missed bunnies for putbacks at the next level.

But, he has a really nice shooting touch, is a willing passer, and has a big, rugged body. He just needs to really commit himself to losing body fat and developing his athleticism. A lot of NBA guys before him could never put in the work to do this. We'll see if he does.

[Tactical unit]

I'll jump on the Naz Reid praise, I love that we got him and his shooting and passing ability is what I like most about him. He doesn't seem to get off the ground the way I would like, maybe that can be improved if not he might struggle at the next level.

[Monster]

Just finished watching the game here are some thoughts.

Naz looks like a terrific find. If he gets in better shape and develops...he has some real upside. Damn I'm excited about him.

KBD got where he wanted on the court but was missing bunnies at the rim. If he makes a few of those in the middle of the game it wouldn't have been close.

Murphy continues to show he has some game at this level.

McLaughlin May sound like a lawyer but he has been impressive. Yeah he got his pocket picked but he was pretty good in this game and he gets after it on defense.

Terrell needs to quit driving the ball. Fortunately my guess is if he ever plays NBA minutes he will he spotting p from 3 not attacking off the dribble. I was impressed with his defense. The Miami guys were going off and he came in and they cooled down. 3 and D guard that can handle the ball on the perimeter can have value if the actually star in their role. That's why he looked worthwhile last season. He did that not driving into the teeth of the defense and throwing up crap or getting owned. I'm not saying he is a keeper just sayin

This was an impressive comeback for the Wolves. Herro looked like the man early on then...he looked like a man later. The Wolves got back on track and got back in the game. Martin continues to do some good work out there.

[Monster]

A couple other thoughts.

McLaughlin blocked Herro in this game.

Does anyone else think KBD looks like he has gotten stronger. I think that arm with the big tree tattooed on I seems bigger than last year.

[Lipoli390]

Just finished watching the game here are some thoughts.

Naz looks like a terrific find. If he gets in better shape and develops...he has some real upside. Damn I'm excited about him.

KBD got where he wanted on the court but was missing bunnies at the rim. If he makes a few of those in the middle of the game it wouldn't have been close.

Murphy continues to show he has some game at this level.

McLaughlin May sound like a lawyer but he has been impressive. Yeah he got his pocket picked but he was pretty good in this game and he gets after it on defense.

Terrell needs to quit driving the ball. Fortunately my guess is if he ever plays NBA minutes he will he spotting p from 3 not attacking off the dribble. I was impressed with his defense. The Miami guys were going off and he came in and they cooled down. 3 and D guard that can handle the ball on the perimeter can have value if the actually star in their role. That's why he looked worthwhile last season. He did that not driving into the teeth of the defense and throwing up crap or getting owned. I'm not saying he is a keeper just sayin

This was an impressive comeback for the Wolves. Herro looked like the man early on then...he looked like a man later. The Wolves got back on track and got back in the game. Martin continues to do some good work out there.

I agree with all your takes except the one on Murphy. I don't see him competing at the NBA level. He looked OK at times against summer league competition, but his lack of length and lack of athleticism will keep him out of the League.