The basketball buffet began with an eye-bleeder of a game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Boston Celtics. As sometimes happens in Summer League both teams looked disjointed and out of synch. For much of the game both turnovers and personal fouls exceeded field goals made by a wide margin. Quality and tempo both picked up in the second half as San Antonio prevailed 61-53.
The second game pitted the Detroit Pistons versus the Memphis Grizzlies. Detroit rookie Rodney Stuckey showed off his quickness and scoring skills, scoring 27 points in his second straight impressive performance. The Grizzlies’ Kyle Lowry nearly matched him with 23. Memphis sensation Rudy Gay, coming off of a dominating effort on opening night, played passively on offense and settled for long jumpers, finishing the game as an afterthought with 11 points on 3-for-16 shooting. Gay did net a team-high 11 rebounds. The Pistons led by 7 with under a minute left but a flurry of scoring by the Grizzlies cut it to two for the final possession with the ball in Memphis hands. Mike Conley Jr. missed the deciding shot at the buzzer. The Pistons won 91-89.
The Golden State Warriors’ Marco Belinelli followed up his 37-point effort against the New Orleans Hornets on Saturday with a 23-point spree against the Philadelphia 76ers today as the Warriors put down Philadelphia 94-87. Philly’s Louis Williams was again the star of the game, shooting 8-for-16 for 23 points and adding 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Rodney Carney was prodigious in his rim-rattling throw-downs and nearly matched Williams with 19 points of his own. But the crowd’s imagination seemed to have been captured by Golden State’s Italian sensation and the Warriors are looking at an instant fan-favorite when the season begins this fall.
The venue switched from intimate Cox Pavilion on the campus of UNLV to the comparatively cavernous Thomas and Mack Center for the fourth game of the day, pitting the Minnesota Timberwolves against the Hornets. Minnesota’s Craig Smith was a wrecking ball, pounding the Hornets for 25 points and 7 rebounds. The Wolves’ celebrated guard tandem of Randy Foye and Rashard McCants had a horrible night, bricking everything they threw up. In the end, however, the game belonged to a couple of big-name 2007 draft picks. The Hornets had the ball with less than five seconds left in regulation and were down by three when Julian Wright canned a three-pointer to push the game into an extra period. Not to be outdone, Minnesota’s Corey Brewer hit the game-winning layup in overtime. The Wolves edged the Hornets 85-83.
The Seattle SuperSonics’ pride and joy Kevin Durant had another rough outing at Cox Pavilion, this time against the New York Knicks. Durant shot 4-for-19 and looked frustrated much of the evening. He still finished with a team-high 18 points by virtue of his perfect night at the free throw line, hitting all eight of his attempts. The Knicks, on the other hand, put six players into double figures. Nate Robinson led the team with 19 points. The game was never in doubt as New York went up by 20 early and held on for an 87-74 victory.
Former UNLV guard Marcus Banks felt right at home in his old gym, blistering the nets with a 2007-record 42 points, an amazing 23 of them in the final period, but Banks’ Phoenix Suns lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers 93-89. Banks added 3 steals and 6 rebounds to his effort. Cleveland’s Darius Rice had another strong outing with 21 points and 5 rebounds of his own.
There were two themes of the day today. First, it's amazing how Summer League teams, even when comprised mostly of non-NBA players, reflect the personality of their big-league squads. One press-row observer was shaking his head in disbelief today as San Antonio made the game so ugly only they could win it and Boston got out to an early lead only to choke it away in the fourth quarter. Golden State plays up-tempo, the Blazers work through the post... it's truly like an NBA contest in minature, for good or ill.
Second, Summer League referees can make as much impact on the game as Summer League players. These guys are trying to prove themselves also and at times that leads to a mind-numbing array of whistles. Quick, penetrating players get a plethora of opportunities at the free-throw line, as do many "name" players. At one point in the Boston-San Antonio game the infractions were coming at the rate of one call per 20 seconds for several minutes straight. Learning to be part of the team offensive and defensive schemes are huge challenges for young, inexperienced players. Learning to manage the flow of the game instead of calling everything you see is the corresponding challenge for refs.