Victor Wembanyama discovered different methods to affect a sport. Noah Clowney couldn’t.
It was the distinction between picks No. 1 and 21 of their NBA Summer League debuts on Friday night time. Both the Spurs’ Wembanyama and Brooklyn’s Clowney struggled to seek out the underside of the online of their opening NBA video games in Las Vegas.
Wembanyama, the generational expertise from France and inheritor obvious to Tim Duncan’s Spurs throne, shot 2-of-13 from the sphere and one-of-six from downtown for 9 factors, whereas Clowney, the streak-shooting stretch-four out of Alabama, shot simply one-of-seven from deep and one-of-nine from the sphere total for 4 factors for the Nets of their 101-97 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.
Wembanyama, nonetheless, was a dominant defensive presence for San Antonio and anchored the protection with 5 ferocious blocks in opposition to No. 2 total decide Brandon Miller and the Charlotte Hornets. He additionally confirmed his skills as a succesful ball handler and facilitator, discovering certainly one of his teammates with a no-look bounce cross for a simple layup within the first quarter.
Clowney got here up with a pair of steals on hustle performs however largely disappeared from the sport when his leap shot faltered. Several of his three-point makes an attempt fell brief, signaling a necessity for the 210-pound rookie to get stronger this offseason. His solely made basket was a top-of-the-key three that got here with 9 minutes to go within the third quarter.
No. 22 total decide Dariq Whitehead watched from the sidelines in a strolling boot and has been dominated out for Summer League rehabbing after foot surgical procedure. Jalen Wilson, the gifted scorer out of Kansas the Nets chosen within the second spherical with the 51st total decide, scored 17 factors in 25 minutes and posted two blocks, one steal and 5 rebounds on the night time.
It was the smooth-shooting Armoni Brooks, the third-year journeyman and former undrafted rookie out of Houston, whose five-of-nine three-point capturing night time helped maintain the Nets afloat. Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn stated he can’t learn too far into Summer League performances.
“You really strip things down to as bare as you can: Are guys competing? Do they have a sense of floor spacing?” he stated in a mid-game interview. “Do they have a sense of being a teammate when things aren’t going in their direction, when they don’t get their minutes that they’re usually accustomed to in a typical basketball game, so those things, those intangibles are what I look forward to looking at first with guys.”
BROOKLYN BRIDGES
Vaughn stated franchise cornerstone Mikal Bridges matches the Nets’ timeline, each along with his age and his sport.
“His ability to take responsibility on both ends of the floor is pretty unique to see,” the coach stated. “He is invested in his teammates. Those things are hard to come by in this league, and when you get a chance to have an individual who loves the game, loves being around a team setting, wants to represent a whole community: That’s Mikal Bridges.”
The Nets acquired Bridges as a part of the Kevin Durant commerce with the Suns, and after serving as a job participant alongside Devin Booker and Chris Paul in Phoenix, Bridges erupted to common 27 factors per sport after his arrival in Brooklyn.
“We did dive into some film,” Vaughn stated. “When Devin Booker was hurt for a stretch of the year, [Bridges] took on some additional responsibility and really responded well. We thought if we could put the basketball in his hands, put some shooters around him, give him some more responsibility, we wanted to see if he could handle it, and he really stepped up, and I think he has even more room to go.”
HEALTHY SIMMONS
Vaughn stated he’s trying ahead to lastly teaching a wholesome Ben Simmons this season. Simmons is the highest-paid Net, set to earn $77 million over the subsequent two seasons, however has largely been unavailable attributable to points along with his decrease again. The Australian ahead has been attacking his rehab this summer time.
“That’s exciting for me,” Vaughn stated. “Our team is excited to have him healthy, part of our program, and moving forward. He has an innate ability to impact the basketball game on both ends of the floor. We missed that in the Philly series and [are] looking forward to it.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com