SL game 3, CHA vs CLE

Pretty much everything about summer league is that way. You can usually tell who CAN’T play by summer league. The fact that you all are saying Williams has improved combined with no real guards, speaks to him not being absolutely lost.

No doubt, i knew from the beginning his game was very dependent on having quality guards, to facilitate his offense… so, those first couple of games were really hard to gauge anything from him. But his contributions outside of offense were still underwhelming. I agree with you, but he definitely has more a of a presence today than he had the first two games.

Did they even call a foul on that elbow to Manek?

Adapting is a good sign. He is young. Not saying he will or will not pan out, but being able to catch up in real time is something

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Are there trailer parks in Australia? Asking for Travers.:joy:

Get those Summer League Rings ready! The buzz is back!

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2 Wins already in SL!! What is this witchcraft?

Very efficient night from Mcgowens, got plenty in his locker

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We just played our best game so far in summer league. It feels real good to have some big’s that can contribute . All so a combo guard who has the ability to play on both sides of the ball. Who is a legit 6,7 . He is much better than i thought he would be . I am starting to think Mitch picked a hidden gym. Williams and Kai could be monsters playing with Ball . Both i think can average 10 and 10 with Ball.

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That is the exact opposite of correct. Manek is one of about three players w a PLUS rating in the 1st two games.

But nobody here wants to read or talk advanced stats. So I guess we will stick w the 1980s “eye test”. No bias there…

Funny, in the last iteration of Clifford, Coach Ewing used to always start with stinkers in SL and we’d improve each game.

Plus minus, really?

Really can’t respond to that one, just had to laugh.

Manek is going to be signed to a two way contract

Haha, exactly

That was a fun game. Everyone looked so much better. I must say, i am excited about McGowens. He’s going to be good. You can just see it.

It was a better game from pretty much everyone.

I was hoping to see slightly better footwork/foot speed from Williams, as that was my principal worry with him. Forget guarding on the perimeter, that’s not him, but can he guard outside the paint? I’m hoping to see gradual improvement, both physically and mentally, in this area of his game. Improvement there will be huge for Mark and us.

Do we know yet who will specifically be charged with coaching our Centres/Bigs? I would have thought with Williams, Kai & potentially Richards on our roster, that role carries significant importance.

I thought the team finally looked comfortable, stark contrast from the first game. Getting more practice, getting game rhythm, seeing shots go in. Turnovers were awful in the first, but seems they settled down after that.

Bryce has earned a guaranteed contract. I know the whole summer league caveat, but someone at 6’7, that good with the ball, that smooth, and I really, really like his aggressiveness in hunting for his shot. I didn’t think he was known as that good of a shooter - CJ on the broadcast was saying how hard he’s worked on it so far, so it’s awesome to hear of his work ethic.

I know its premature, but if he can translate this game to the big leagues, he may actually be the perfect fit we were thinking for Melo. SG with size, range, and ball handling ability to break defenders down and create. And I read somewhere that he actually loves defense and wants to get better. 2nd Round Mitch may have struck gold.

Big Mark looked good this game. Since summer league is so guard dominant, its hard for a traditional big to get much action. But the 2nd half, there seemed a concerted effort to get him the ball. Can confirm he in fact does NOT have Biz hands. A couple passes I half expected to go out of bounds, he was able to corral and get a dunk.

Defensively, you could always see opposing guards hesitate, or not fully penetrate the lane while he was around. This is something that can’t be captured in stats, but that presence was noticeable to me. With the Cavs inability to hit 3s, there were no easy points for them to find and allowed us to take control of the game.

He is no Kai Jones at all, or any of the fancy new unicorn bigs. But one time I noticed the ball heading to the sidelines, he was able to turn quick enough and sprint over to grab it. I think he’s more in the Jarrett Allen category in terms of speed, which would be good enough. I also think it might be a balance training issue, as sometimes it seems his feet look stuck in the ground because of his momentum. Strengthening his hips, working on being light in the feet and better balanced, I think he could become much more fluid there.

The coaches actually made a good move in splitting Mark and Kai up as the centers, and moving Thor to the 4. I think it was during the Cliff interview a while back, where especially with young players, you need to limit their roles to the 2-3 things they’re good at. Maybe throwing new positions for those 2 didn’t allow them to focus on their strengths, and didn’t lead to success anywhere.

Kai’s athleticism jumped off the screen, and I think allowing him to be an athlete right now will help him the best right now. Perimeter skills can wait til he’s more confident there.

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Finally sat down to see some summer league action. Through the first quarter of last night’s game.

The guards are atrocious. There are maybe 5 players of interest.

Williams
McGowan
Kai
Thor

And maybe
Manek

Williams: he is going to be good. He is a paint protector. Not in the hibbert stand in front of the rim but in a 14 ft in rim protector. With guards that can actually play, he is going to be good

McGowan: that dude can ball

Kai: still a spaz but good gravy is he athletic. He could probably use another year down but I would bring him up. And he is only to be played at 5

Thor: I like him as a third of in the rotation

Not to go back to my moneyball joke, but Mitch should go ahead and trade Richards for a third round pick just so cliff can’t play him at the center

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Chef, those four you listed deserve a roster spot imo. I would like to see two of Figuerola, Alexander, and Manek with the 2-way contracts. I think McGowans is definitely deserving of a spot.

Also, you made me chuckle with that third round pick. I am sure we can get somethink for Richards, he is not a bad 2nd backup center (3rd in rotation), but given that we already have Williams and Kai, no need for him