Biggest Winners and Losers from NBA Las Vegas Summer League – Bleacher Report

Although injuries to some key rookies took some of the shine off the 2023 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, it will always be remembered as Victor Wembanyama’s first official NBA action.
While Wembanyama commandeered the early spotlight, plenty of other players and teams showed out in Vegas as well. From former top picks breaking out to young teams flashing their collection of talent, there were plenty of winners to go around.
There were some disappointments as well. The overall level of play seemed to fizzle out after some early injuries and other high-profile players being shut down. Some of the prospects we expected to dominate summer league underwhelmed, which should be somewhat concerning for their respective teams.
With the 2023 edition of Las Vegas Summer League nearly complete, these are the biggest winners and losers from Sin City.

The challenge for a top-heavy Cleveland Cavaliers team with no first-round picks left to trade and a roster pushing up against the luxury tax is to find and develop young talent.
If this summer was any indication, Cleveland is on the right path.
While the Cavs’ summer-league roster lacked the star power of other squads, this was an incredibly deep and talented team that began 5-0 overall and clinched a spot in the Summer League Finals led by 2023 second-round pick Emoni Bates.
Bates showed off his shot-making ability, drilling 41.0 percent of his threes while averaging 16.8 points and 6.2 rebounds. The 6’9″ forward showed flashes of being an elite scorer while also exhibiting some strong defense at times as well, something that was lacking during his time at Eastern Michigan.
If Bates even comes close to reaching his sky-high potential, Cleveland could have the steal of the draft. Meanwhile, the other two-way contract guys, Craig Porter Jr. and Isaiah Mobley, looked like NBA players as well.
After going undrafted out of Wichita State, Porter continued to impact the game in a number of areas, averaging 12.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.8 assists while shooting 48.2 percent overall. Mobley, the older brother of teammate Evan, showed off his versatile game while putting up 15.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.4 blocks.
Sam Merrill made his case to crack an NBA rotation with his three-point shooting, knocking down 4.8 triples per game on 43.2 percent shooting while leading the Cavaliers with 18.8 points in his four games.
While the undefeated record was nice, the Cavs have to be thrilled with how many potential rotation players popped up during summer league to help Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley this year.

For a Hawks team showcasing some of its best young talent, the overall performances from AJ Griffin and rookie Kobe Bufkin were underwhelming.
While Bufkin hit a game-winning shot against the Philadelphia 76ers and had some of the best passes of summer league, the 19-year-old guard looked out of control at times, averaging 4.6 turnovers and 3.4 fouls per game.
“Kobe (Bufkin) needs to settle down a little,” one Hawks personnel member told Spotrac.com’s Keith Smith. It’ll come for him. We’re deep, but not in ball-handlers. Kobe could find a rotation role this year.”
Overall, Bufkin shot only 33.3 percent from the field and a miserable 13.8 percent from three. The No. 15 overall pick from this year’s draft will need to cut down on his turnovers and start hitting more shots for an Atlanta team that’s in danger of suffering a first-round playoff exit yet again.
Griffin, the No. 16 pick in 2022, was supposed to be the alpha of the group given his strong rookie season for the Hawks. Instead, he ended up as the team’s sixth-leading scorer in summer league, averaging only 9.0 points on 27.3 percent shooting overall.
If the Hawks want to take another big swing in the trade market for someone like Pascal Siakam, young players such as Bufkin and Griffin are some of their best trade assets. Getting some big performances from both could have helped convince executives in Toronto to part with Siakam. Instead, there’s likely more hesitancy for a deal, which could force the Hawks to include even more picks and players in trade talks.

Seeing Chet Holmgren healthy and playing in summer league was a reminder of why he went No. 2 overall in the 2022 draft. Despite standing 7’1″, the 21-year-old has the ball skills of a guard.
His per-game averages of 20.5 points on 56.0 percent shooting, 9.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals were beyond impressive, especially since he’s coming off a year-long hiatus from a foot injury. If Holmgren can shoot threes at a decent clip and limit his turnovers and fouling, he’ll have a real chance to win Rookie of the Year.
He also showed why he will be an immediate candidate for an All-Defensive team. His 3.5 blocks per game trailed only Victor Wembanyama and Amen Thompson. He contested everything at the rim, flying in from the weak side and coming out of nowhere for dramatic chase-down swats.
Teammate Ousmane Dieng showed why OKC gave up three first-round picks to trade up for him last season. He put up 15.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 0.8 steals in three games while knocking down 36.0 percent of his threes. It’s wild to think that Dieng isn’t even one of the top prospects on this loaded Thunder team, although he turned 20 only two months ago and is a tremendously skilled 6’10” forward.
Mix in some strong flashes from 2023 first-round pick Cason Wallace, Jaylin Williams, Tre Mann, Keyontae Johnson and others, and it’s easy to see why the Thunder are poised to soon take over the NBA.

The Charlotte Hornets looked like one of the worst teams in summer league, losing their first four games before finally securing a victory in their final contest. While records matter little in July, the Hornets didn’t get the pop from some of their young players like other teams.
The selection of Brandon Miller at No. 2 overall could make or break the Hornets’ future, especially with some of the players selected immediately after him (Scoot Henderson, Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson) looking like future stars in their brief summer-league tenures.
Miller had some good stretches, but he shot only 35.4 percent overall and 26.1 percent from three in his three games, all of which the Hornets lost. He also struggled with foul trouble, committing 4.7 fouls per game in Las Vegas. A few ultimately meaningless games don’t define a prospect’s future, but it would have been nice to see Miller fare better.
Perhaps more concerning, James Bouknight still looks like a bust heading into his third season in Charlotte, though a 28-point game against the New Orleans Pelicans helped to salvage his overall stat line.
The 11th overall pick in 2021 should be dominating this level of competition by now, yet he managed only 13.5 points in his four games while shooting 38.2 percent overall and 27.6 percent from three. He showed little interest in getting others involved and didn’t make much of a defensive impact. After shooting a lowly 35.3 percent over his first two NBA seasons, Bouknight still looked overmatched at times in Summer League.
While players like Nick Smith Jr. and Kai Jones showed promise, Charlotte needed more from Miller and Bouknight.

While he played in only two summer-league games, Jabari Smith Jr., the No. 3 overall pick in 2022, was arguably the best player in Las Vegas.
His 35.5 points per game easily led all scorers, with a 9.7-point lead over second place Orlando Robinson of the Miami Heat. After a modest first half in Game 1 where he only scored four points, Smith was unstoppable over his final six quarters of play.
Smith’s 6’11” frame and 7’2″ wingspan were on full display, as he hit shot after shot over the top of defenders from all areas. He showed a little bit of everything: pull-up threes in transition, fancy drives to the basket, fadeaway jumpers from both sides and even a game-winning three to sink the Portland Trail Blazers with 0.6 seconds left.
While Smith has largely taken a back seat to Jalen Green and now the signings of Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks this summer, the 20-year-old has superstar potential and could ultimately become the face of the franchise.
Rockets fans should be thrilled with the rest of this young core as well.
Tari Eason was the tied for third on the scoring leaders list in Las Vegas at 23.0 points per game, rookie Cam Whitmore tied a summer league record with eight steals in a game (while putting up 20.4 points) and Amen Thompson looked awesome in his lone contest before leaving with a sprained ankle (16 points, five assists, four rebounds, four blocks, three steals).
Houston suddenly looks like it has one of best young talent bases in the NBA, especially if all four carry over their strong summer-league play.

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