How to watch the 2016 Summer League

[AzStevenCal]

3rd- Not much till 4min left, love to see how the team stuck up for Booker. So many times during the Morri years you would see players not care what happened to each other. Love the hustle from all the big 4. Bender still not willing to go left or spin left in the post NEEDS TO WORK ON THAT!!!

I am a little worried about Booker thinking he has already made it, but if is able to take over a game like he did, then maybe he has. His post game looks good.

Capitalizing and then throwing out 3 exclamation marks seems way overboard to me. You're expecting a finished product from an 18 year old kid in his first summer league game? A kid who mostly due to political reasons has had very little game time the past couple of years? His game is very incomplete but hardly worthy of such intense focus IMO.

 

[SweetD]

4th- Bender does a great job boxing out and getting position for rebounds. He will shoot his way into rhythm for sure over the summer. Love the scrappyness of these kids, they are really focused and determined!!

You can see Chriss and Bender are gassed in the 4th.

 

[SweetD]

Capitalizing and then throwing out 3 exclamation marks seems way overboard to me. You're expecting a finished product from an 18 year old kid in his first summer league game? A kid who mostly due to political reasons has had very little game time the past couple of years? His game is very incomplete but hardly worthy of such intense focus IMO.

I am not expecting a finished player, but you cannot limit your game to one side. Just saying he needs to work on that now. It can limit him big time when he gets to next level and teams are scouting you.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

I am not expecting a finished player, but you cannot limit your game to one side. Just saying he needs to work on that now. It can limit him big time when he gets to next level and teams are scouting you.

I'm not disagreeing that he needs to get comfortable going left, but there are a lot of guys who "only go one way" in this league that somehow always seem to find a way to go that one way without the other team stopping it.

 

[SweetD]

Good, Bad and Ugly Game 1 SL

Good - Bender looks tall!! Both Bender and Chriss can handle the ball very well! You will see a lot of lobs to Chriss in the future. Defense and rebounding was solid for game 1.

Bad - Bender needs to work on team ball, less ISO. No willing to go left would be something to watch in future games. Chriss will need to work on defense and timing but that will just have to come with time. He is not ready to be an ISO or create his own shot yet. Hope we see less minutes from Booker the rest of the summer.

Ugly- Not really a bad thing but this core of young players are scrappy and willing to mix it up with others. They also have each others backs, Bender especially.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

I was really intrigued to watch this game, especially to see the rookies.

Booker - the most savvy 19 year old I've ever seen. He trash talks like a vet, interviews like a vet, and most importantly plays like a vet. The only thing holding him back from being a superstar is good but not transcendent athleticism. I don't think it's a stretch to think he can be as good as Klay Thompson.


Chriss - made some nice moves, but also still looks like a guy who is learning how to play basketball. Major project at this point.

Ullis - pure point guard, makes up for his slight stature with tons of energy and heart. He'll get some minutes this year, and seems NBA ready.

Bender - Having never seen him play against real competition, I can see why the Suns are so excited about him. Bender is just a physical freak - runs around like a SF at 7'1 and incredibly long.

Comparisons to other euro busts seem misguided. At worst, Bender seems like a NBA rotation player, with his ceiling being Kirelenko on roids.

All in all, I'm excited to see what this group can do. Nice to see almost the whole team in Vegas supporting the young guys, and a real sense of camaraderie. (something that has been noticeably absent the last couple years)

 

[AzStevenCal]

I am not expecting a finished player, but you cannot limit your game to one side. Just saying he needs to work on that now. It can limit him big time when he gets to next level and teams are scouting you.

I was impressed with the way he moved and his basketball instincts but it's clear he's a long way from his potential. I just think worrying about "going left" is somewhere down the road, his defensive potential and his playmaking ability will carry him until he starts to develop moves and counter moves.

 

[Sunburn]

Even with Bender shooting poorly, in his first taste of NBA action, he still had 12 points and 7 rebounds, and displayed remarkable defense and ballhandling. He shoots smoothly but his trajectory seemed a bit too flat. When the shot wasn't falling, he showed an ability to pump fake and go to the basket, finish or draw a foul. He moves extremely well for such a tall player. I'd be encouraged by what I saw even if he wasn't the youngest player on the floor. But he was. Between Chriss and Bender, if I had to put my money on one right now, it'd be Bender.

 

[Sunburn]

Devin Booker's scoring was great. His passing stood out to me also. Scoring and passing come naturally to him. That's special. Also, not a bad rebounder. 19 years old. Very, very special player.

 

[sunsfan88]

Like I said in the other thread, Booker does not belong in summer league. He's far too good for this, I'd rather see someone struggling for a roster spot get those minutes. And quite to the contrary, Booker is indeed "ready for the NBA" and if he isn't then nobody else in the league is either.

I really like Ulis. He did almost everything well. I'd like to see him shot some 3s though. With his height, he must be able to knock down shots.

I was impressed with Bender. He doesn't have much of a jumper but just his physical stature was impressive. Watching a guy that tall move around so quick and bring the ball ball up is fun. He has promise. Chriss had an okay game, I'm hoping we see more.

A shame Warren hasn't recovered yet, he's someone I'd love to have seen here.

 

[Sunburn]

Baha, saw Booker put his shoulder through a Vonleh screen. Vonleh did not like it. Haha when Booker fouls, he fouls hard. Drew a technical from Vonleh. Oh I like him. I really really really like Booker.

 

[Sunburn]

Booker showed a post game. And a trash talk game, a bit surprisingly. At 19 years old. He knew he was better and he told them on numerous occasions. Go back and watch him talk. Muhahahaha. Love. LOVE. Untouchable.

 

[Mainstreet]

Like I said in the other thread, Booker does not belong in summer league. He's far too good for this, I'd rather see someone struggling for a roster spot get those minutes. And quite to the contrary, Booker is indeed "ready for the NBA" and if he isn't then nobody else in the league is either.

I really like Ulis. He did almost everything well. I'd like to see him shot some 3s though. With his height, he must be able to knock down shots.

I was impressed with Bender. He doesn't have much of a jumper but just his physical stature was impressive. Watching a guy that tall move around so quick and bring the ball ball up is fun. He has promise. Chriss had an okay game, I'm hoping we see more.

A shame Warren hasn't recovered yet, he's someone I'd love to have seen here.

I haven't read anything new about TJ Warren. Do you have a link regarding his current status?

It's exciting the Suns have three teenagers (Bender, Chriss, and Booker) that have a good chance to be building blocks for the future.

I was particularly impressed by Bender yesterday. He is not soft and he has all the tools to be really good. It's hard to believe he is only 18.

 

[ColdPickleNachos]

I was at the game, three rows back. Very impressed by Bender. He definitely passes the eye test in a way that Thon Maker (whom I saw the day before) doesn't. He's bigger and more physical than I expected.

I've been to a lot of these summer leagues, and it's pretty much just about seeing if the rookies have a chance to succeed. I don't think you can tell for certain if someone is going to be good, but there are some guys you can tell immediately have no chance.

The first time I saw Kendall Marshall and Tyler Ennis play, respectively, I was pretty certain they were wasted picks. None of the rookies this year fit that category.

One of the most interesting things I took away from the experience came from watching the Suns practice and warm up for nearly an hour before the game. They separated the guards and small forwards from the bigs for various drills.

Dragan Bender warmed up with the guards and small forwards the entire time.

I think the kid can be special one day.

 

[Mainstreet]

I was at the game, three rows back. Very impressed by Bender. He definitely passes the eye test in a way that Thon Maker (whom I saw the day before) doesn't. He's bigger and more physical than I expected.

I've been to a lot of these summer leagues, and it's pretty much just about seeing if the rookies have a chance to succeed. I don't think you can tell for certain if someone is going to be good, but there are some guys you can tell immediately have no chance.

The first time I saw Kendall Marshall and Tyler Ennis play, respectively, I was pretty certain they were wasted picks. None of the rookies this year fit that category.

One of the most interesting things I took away from the experience came from watching the Suns practice and warm up for nearly an hour before the game. They separated the guards and small forwards from the bigs for various drills.

Dragan Bender warmed up with the guards and small forwards the entire time.

I think the kid can be special one day.

Thanks for the update. It looks like Bender can play several positions if needed.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

I was impressed with Bender. He doesn't have much of a jumper but just his physical stature was impressive. Watching a guy that tall move around so quick and bring the ball ball up is fun. He has promise. Chriss had an okay game, I'm hoping we see more.

I think you might change you mind on that statement within the next couple games. Anyone who lets it fly the way he was is obviously very confident in his ability to knock those shots down and he has that confidence because he is good enough to expect them to fall. I would imagine his outside shooting will get better and better as SL progresses.

 

[Bada0Bing]

Like I said in the other thread, Booker does not belong in summer league. He's far too good for this, I'd rather see someone struggling for a roster spot get those minutes. And quite to the contrary, Booker is indeed "ready for the NBA" and if he isn't then nobody else in the league is either.

I really like Ulis. He did almost everything well. I'd like to see him shot some 3s though. With his height, he must be able to knock down shots.

I was impressed with Bender. He doesn't have much of a jumper but just his physical stature was impressive. Watching a guy that tall move around so quick and bring the ball ball up is fun. He has promise. Chriss had an okay game, I'm hoping we see more.

A shame Warren hasn't recovered yet, he's someone I'd love to have seen here.

I think it's great to see Booker out there with the rookies. I agree he's too good, but it's invaluable from a team chemistry aspect.

I'd be happy to see Booker play one more game and then hand off the team to the rookies.

Agree about Ulis. He looks ready to be our backup PG.

 

[WuRaider]

Bender couldn't hit a shot but after seeing him play, I'm excited for him to become one of the main options to initiate the offense.

 

[Ronin]

Ugh hopefully the CHI/Philly game doesn't bleed into the start time of our teams game.


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[CardsSunsDbacks]

Ugh hopefully the CHI/Philly game doesn't bleed into the start time of our teams game.


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I think they will be played on the same court. So I don't think our game will start until that one is over.

 

[Ronin]

I think they will be played on the same court. So I don't think our game will start until that one is over.

That is good news. I just looked at the cable guide and saw that it was a double header tonight.


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[Bada0Bing]

Bender couldn't hit a shot but after seeing him play, I'm excited for him to become one of the main options to initiate the offense.

Yeah his shot was off, but he has nice form. Booker started off slow last year too.

I was shocked at how well he could handle the ball. Very fluid out there for a 7-footer.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Thoughts on Portland game:

Booker is Booker. Excellent offensively needs work defensively. Liked his leadership.

Ulis looked good, but didn't see superior speed which I expected. But sound. Will that translate to league play?

Chriss is incredibly athletic but looks totally lost out there. Game is WAY too fast for him right now. He looks like a deer caught in the headlights.

Bender was other end of spectrum. He looked like he knew what it meant to play pro ball. His J wasn't working, but he moved well, scrambled in D, and didn't seem intimidated by the game.

Alec Brown dropped a couple nice shots, but thought his vaunted shot blocking was nonexistent.

Alan Williams . . . sigh. Just too earthbound to be a night-in and night-out regular. Plays really hard. Rebounds well. Is complete liability on offense. Yes he sets great picks, but his defender, and everyone else on the court, can completely ignore him. He has no shot and because he is slow and can't elevate he's no threat on the roll.

Overall really liked the defensive intensity and rotations.

 

[Chaplin]

Chriss with 5 points and 6 rebounds in the first quarter. Anybody watching that can give any impressions?

Oh and looks like Booker is ballin again.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Chriss with 5 points and 6 rebounds in the first quarter. Anybody watching that can give any impressions?

Oh and looks like Booker is ballin again.

He's been attacking the offensive boards. Has a couple nice put backs.