[Game] [VSL Game 1] Kings vs Magic, 7/10/2025 4:30 Pacific 7:30 Eastern (NBATV)

[Caccia]

As for Carter, I was hesitant about his abilities to be a PG on offense coming out of college. I think he had the potential to be a focal point on offense and have the ball in his hands due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, ability to draw fouls, and PnR game, but I also considered it a long shot. I think it was much more likely he’d become a guy like Alex Caruso, Donte DiVencenzo, Marcus Smart, Josh Hart, etc.

This 1st SL game didn’t help me gain more confidence in his PG play/potential, but it’s just 1 game. We need to see a body of work to assess how much he has grown/developed from last season.

What’s most concerning for me about his PG potential/upside is the fact that he said in an interview that he has never played PG in his life. That was actually really surprising to hear. I would have thought at some point growing up he would have been in a PG role, but he confirms that’s not the case.

That statement makes me feel even less sure in his PG potential/upside than the poor SL performance I just watched. I feel like there’s a much wider chasm for him to cross in order to be that PG on offense than I originally thought. And that’s not to say that Carter can’t be a very impactful player anymore, he can! I’m just becoming more pessimistic that he’s going to develop into an offensive PG.

EDIT: And I don’t necessarily disagree with keeping Carter at PG for the entirety of the SL even if he continues to struggle (and even if the FO doesn’t see him as a PG). Let him get more reps with the ball in his hands, let him get more reps with people pressuring him in the backcourt, let him get more reps in the PnR, let him get more reps driving to the rim, let him get more reps making reads when he collapses a defense, etc.

He may not be good enough at all of those things to warrant him being a PG in the big leagues, but all of those things he will have to do in the big leagues (just at a lower volume). Have him work on them here to try and improve and get more comfortable so he can be that much more impactful in the role he’s likely more suited to play. But one thing is for sure, he’s going to need to be at least respectable from 3 if he wants to have a chance at carving out a significant role on a team.

Well said.

 

[TaxMan]

As for Carter, I was hesitant about his abilities to be a PG on offense coming out of college. I think he had the potential to be a focal point on offense and have the ball in his hands due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, ability to draw fouls, and PnR game, but I also considered it a long shot. I think it was much more likely he’d become a guy like Alex Caruso, Donte DiVencenzo, Marcus Smart, Josh Hart, etc.

This 1st SL game didn’t help me gain more confidence in his PG play/potential, but it’s just 1 game. We need to see a body of work to assess how much he has grown/developed from last season.

What’s most concerning for me about his PG potential/upside is the fact that he said in an interview that he has never played PG in his life. That was actually really surprising to hear. I would have thought at some point growing up he would have been in a PG role, but he confirms that’s not the case.

That statement makes me feel even less sure in his PG potential/upside than the poor SL performance I just watched. I feel like there’s a much wider chasm for him to cross in order to be that PG on offense than I originally thought. And that’s not to say that Carter can’t be a very impactful player anymore, he can! I’m just becoming more pessimistic that he’s going to develop into an offensive PG.

EDIT: And I don’t necessarily disagree with keeping Carter at PG for the entirety of the SL even if he continues to struggle (and even if the FO doesn’t see him as a PG). Let him get more reps with the ball in his hands, let him get more reps with people pressuring him in the backcourt, let him get more reps in the PnR, let him get more reps driving to the rim, let him get more reps making reads when he collapses a defense, etc.

He may not be good enough at all of those things to warrant him being a PG in the big leagues, but all of those things he will have to do in the big leagues (just at a lower volume). Have him work on them here to try and improve and get more comfortable so he can be that much more impactful in the role he’s likely more suited to play. But one thing is for sure, he’s going to need to be at least respectable from 3 if he wants to have a chance at carving out a significant role on a team.

I completely agree with this. If he can't play PG, then his path is even tighter and upside more limited. I also find it pretty surprising he said he doesn't have the experience. The Marcus Smart comp would seem to be the closest from a size, defense, and intangibles perspective. However, I think he was probably a bit more of a PG coming out of college. It sure seems like Devin has the potential to be a better three point shooter than Smart, but yet to prove it. Really need to see him competent at PG skills in summer league and have his shot come around quick. Given all the other intangibles he has, I don't need him to dominate offensively to give me hope, but he at least can't look bad offensively in SL. It just doesn't seem like there are a lot of examples of highly effective players that looked bad in SL (regardless of whether this was his rookie season SL or first after his weird injury impacted year one).

 

[twslam07]

I completely agree with this. If he can't play PG, then his path is even tighter and upside more limited. I also find it pretty surprising he said he doesn't have the experience. The Marcus Smart comp would seem to be the closest from a size, defense, and intangibles perspective. However, I think he was probably a bit more of a PG coming out of college. It sure seems like Devin has the potential to be a better three point shooter than Smart, but yet to prove it. Really need to see him competent at PG skills in summer league and have his shot come around quick. Given all the other intangibles he has, I don't need him to dominate offensively to give me hope, but he at least can't look bad offensively in SL. It just doesn't seem like there are a lot of examples of highly effective players that looked bad in SL (regardless of whether this was his rookie season SL or first after his weird injury impacted year one).

I don’t value SL as much as you do in this regard. For starters, these teams are hacked together a lot of the time and they have very little time to practice, get familiar with each other, etc. The other component is that teams sometimes use SL to experiment (e.g., putting Carter at PG, playing Adebayo at PG, etc.).

I actually think someone’s G-League play is more predictable of future success than their SL play. I feel like there is more structure in the games being played in the G-League vs. SL can sometimes be a glorified pickup game.

And what Carter has going for him is that he actually posted very impressive per 36 min stats in the 5 games he played in the G-League…

.696 TS%
18.7 FGA
.517 FG%
8.4 2PA
.675 2P%
10.3 3PA
.388 3P%
3.2 FTA
.733 FT%
28.0 PTS
9.9 REB
5.7 AST
2.1 STL
1.1 BLK
4.0 TO
1.1 PF

And they had Mason Jones playing the PG role next to Carter for those games if I’m not mistaken (vs. they’re having Carter play the PG role during SL).

 

[The_Jamal]

I don’t value SL as much as you do in this regard. For starters, these teams are hacked together a lot of the time and they have very little time to practice, get familiar with each other, etc. The other component is that teams sometimes use SL to experiment (e.g., putting Carter at PG, playing Adebayo at PG, etc.).

I actually think someone’s G-League play is more predictable of future success than their SL play. I feel like there is more structure in the games being played in the G-League vs. SL can sometimes be a glorified pickup game.

And what Carter has going for him is that he actually posted very impressive per 36 min stats in the 5 games he played in the G-League…

.696 TS%
18.7 FGA
.517 FG%
8.4 2PA
.675 2P%
10.3 3PA
.388 3P%
3.2 FTA
.733 FT%
28.0 PTS
9.9 REB
5.7 AST
2.1 STL
1.1 BLK
4.0 TO
1.1 PF

And they had Mason Jones playing the PG role next to Carter for those games if I’m not mistaken (vs. they’re having Carter play the PG role during SL).

More than anything, just need a real sample on Carter. 300 disjointed NBA minutes and 150ish G League minutes and 1 SL appearance is basically nothing to go off of.

That's why I'm hoping we do not "fill" the backup pg spot. Good or bad, we need to see what Carter looks like in 1300+ NBA minutes this year

 

[jiimbob]

More than anything, just need a real sample on Carter. 300 disjointed NBA minutes and 150ish G League minutes and 1 SL appearance is basically nothing to go off of.

That's why I'm hoping we do not "fill" the backup pg spot. Good or bad, we need to see what Carter looks like in 1300+ NBA minutes this year

We also, for now anyway, still have Monk on board. Seemed the backup PG position is where he did best.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

It would be nice if kuminga bets on himself and signs for 1 year of the full MLE.
A man can dream right

with who? that would be the worst bet he could make as only the Wizards are projected to have any real space next season. maybe the Nets.

He can either sign the QO with the Dubs which is more than the MLE or he can get a 3-4 year MLE deal which will insure the team he goes to keeps his Bird rights.

A one year deal means he is signing next year at the MLE again as he won't have even early-Bird with his new team.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Carter definitely didn't feel like a PG last night but on the other hand I think Perry said this team had two practices and aside from 2-3 other players these aren't really NBA guys so he won't be racking up assists either. But right now he just felt a bit out of control which is not what you want from a PG even if just ~10 mins a night at that spot. I'd feel more comfortable with Monk in that role, right now.

Still let's see what happens when this team gets more reps together.

 

[admira1]

As for Carter, I was hesitant about his abilities to be a PG on offense coming out of college. I think he had the potential to be a focal point on offense and have the ball in his hands due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, ability to draw fouls, and PnR game, but I also considered it a long shot. I think it was much more likely he’d become a guy like Alex Caruso, Donte DiVencenzo, Marcus Smart, Josh Hart, etc.

This 1st SL game didn’t help me gain more confidence in his PG play/potential, but it’s just 1 game. We need to see a body of work to assess how much he has grown/developed from last season.

What’s most concerning for me about his PG potential/upside is the fact that he said in an interview that he has never played PG in his life. That was actually really surprising to hear. I would have thought at some point growing up he would have been in a PG role, but he confirms that’s not the case.

That statement makes me feel even less sure in his PG potential/upside than the poor SL performance I just watched. I feel like there’s a much wider chasm for him to cross in order to be that PG on offense than I originally thought. And that’s not to say that Carter can’t be a very impactful player anymore, he can! I’m just becoming more pessimistic that he’s going to develop into an offensive PG.

EDIT: And I don’t necessarily disagree with keeping Carter at PG for the entirety of the SL even if he continues to struggle (and even if the FO doesn’t see him as a PG). Let him get more reps with the ball in his hands, let him get more reps with people pressuring him in the backcourt, let him get more reps in the PnR, let him get more reps driving to the rim, let him get more reps making reads when he collapses a defense, etc.

He may not be good enough at all of those things to warrant him being a PG in the big leagues, but all of those things he will have to do in the big leagues (just at a lower volume). Have him work on them here to try and improve and get more comfortable so he can be that much more impactful in the role he’s likely more suited to play. But one thing is for sure, he’s going to need to be at least respectable from 3 if he wants to have a chance at carving out a significant role on a team.

I mean those guys have a lot of playoff and defensive clout behind them. I can think of worse outcomes!

 

[Jdbraver137]

I think it’s pretty obvious Carter is green at being a pg. It’s one of those things where you need to lean on what he can do rather than what he can’t. Same thing with Monk we learned last year. These guys are scoring guards, not facilitators. Monk has a good pick n roll/pop though, but with carters age I’m not sure he should be picking something new up at this point.

 

[The_Jamal]

Am i crazy, but didnt he run point in the g league last year?

 

[Jdbraver137]

Am i crazy, but didnt he run point in the g league last year?

Didn’t he only play like 4 g-league games?

 

[TaxMan]

I don’t value SL as much as you do in this regard. For starters, these teams are hacked together a lot of the time and they have very little time to practice, get familiar with each other, etc. The other component is that teams sometimes use SL to experiment (e.g., putting Carter at PG, playing Adebayo at PG, etc.).

I think it's easy for people to excuse poor SL play because of these factors; however, basic talent should rise to the top. Less about him dominating and getting 20+ per game, but if he struggles getting his shot off, finishing at the rim, hitting the three, running the pick and roll, etc., in summer league, I'm just pretty skeptical its going to work for him. I don't think dominating at SL is necessarily an indicator of future success, but not standing out will be a concern. I feel like you should be able to watch a player in SL and say "yep, he's got it."

 

[The_Jamal]

Didn’t he only play like 4 g-league games?

5. And he put up absolutely monster stats.

Like tw said, I think G League success is a better indicator than summer league.

He's got to be better for sure. But theres a lot of sweeping conclusions being made over 1 poor offensive SL performance

 

[pdxKingsFan]

I think it's easy for people to excuse poor SL play because of these factors; however, basic talent should rise to the top. Less about him dominating and getting 20+ per game, but if he struggles getting his shot off, finishing at the rim, hitting the three, running the pick and roll, etc., in summer league, I'm just pretty skeptical its going to work for him. I don't think dominating at SL is necessarily an indicator of future success, but not standing out will be a concern. I feel like you should be able to watch a player in SL and say "yep, he's got it."

Yeah - it's lesser competition so players should be dominant at certain skills. There are certain other skills that won't show themselves because of the lesser talent and very short time together and some elements of PG play are a part of that. The areas that Carter is struggling however seem to be in the red flag category but his G-League play was not, so maybe give him time too demonstrate skills on a real "team".

 

[SacTownKid]

The question is not what the fans think, it's what the front office thinks. Carter is already on the trading block, with only a short opportunity to show what he can do. Supposedly, Jonathan Kuminga is meeting with teams, including the Kings and the Warriors, in Las Vegas this week. If Devin is still a King by the end of next week, none of this matters.

The Warriors are still trying to avoid trading Kuminga to the Kings, it appears, since the Kings are in the same division. But their options are limited right now. The whole situation is weird.

For starters, is he on the block or were the Kings willing to move him for Kuminga? Some "insiders" are now making it sound like the Kings looked to see if they could Kuminga for free and were rebuffed. Every single player on the Kings this summer supposedly was checked for value. We also heard from every single "insider" that he was for sure going to be used to get into the first round too. Didn't happen. The unfortunate thing is this could turn into another cyclical thing for the Kings. Guys like Huerter, Lyles, Davion, so on and so on kind of feeling like the red headed step child. Now they're literally going to have an entire team full of players constantly wondering when it's their time to bail. Especially Monk and DeMar. Yeah, I'm sure they'll be bought in! haha. Might be bad for the team but good for the pick!

 

[SacTownKid]

Relax folks. It’s great the rookies looked good. Maxime showed he has high bball IQ. Is he already the next Joker. No, but it is a good sign that he is capable. Let people have some joy rooting for him.

He looked like it for 5 whole minutes, that's all that matters haha.

 

[SacTownKid]

As for Carter, I was hesitant about his abilities to be a PG on offense coming out of college. I think he had the potential to be a focal point on offense and have the ball in his hands due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, ability to draw fouls, and PnR game, but I also considered it a long shot. I think it was much more likely he’d become a guy like Alex Caruso, Donte DiVencenzo, Marcus Smart, Josh Hart, etc.

This 1st SL game didn’t help me gain more confidence in his PG play/potential, but it’s just 1 game. We need to see a body of work to assess how much he has grown/developed from last season.

What’s most concerning for me about his PG potential/upside is the fact that he said in an interview that he has never played PG in his life. That was actually really surprising to hear. I would have thought at some point growing up he would have been in a PG role, but he confirms that’s not the case.

That statement makes me feel even less sure in his PG potential/upside than the poor SL performance I just watched. I feel like there’s a much wider chasm for him to cross in order to be that PG on offense than I originally thought. And that’s not to say that Carter can’t be a very impactful player anymore, he can! I’m just becoming more pessimistic that he’s going to develop into an offensive PG.

EDIT: And I don’t necessarily disagree with keeping Carter at PG for the entirety of the SL even if he continues to struggle (and even if the FO doesn’t see him as a PG). Let him get more reps with the ball in his hands, let him get more reps with people pressuring him in the backcourt, let him get more reps in the PnR, let him get more reps driving to the rim, let him get more reps making reads when he collapses a defense, etc.

He may not be good enough at all of those things to warrant him being a PG in the big leagues, but all of those things he will have to do in the big leagues (just at a lower volume). Have him work on them here to try and improve and get more comfortable so he can be that much more impactful in the role he’s likely more suited to play. But one thing is for sure, he’s going to need to be at least respectable from 3 if he wants to have a chance at carving out a significant role on a team.

Mistry has already said there is no full stop PG in their gameplan, and there wasn't. Carter was basically playing the same way he did in season which is the exact thing Mistry described. Get the ball up, swing it around. Carter did have some pretty good reads once he got into the paint which again, is like 90% of "PG" play. Even that late clutch play where he got the ball to Clifford. Carter created that opportunity. When watching the defense it was obvious they were big time testing Carter. Which is what you want in summer league. HE was the focus of the Magic's gameplan defensively. They blitzed him, they doubled, they wanted to get the ball out of Carters hands and stop penetration. The other guys like Clifford would usually just get a switch. Now we see how Carter responds both emotionally and situationally. Maybe the rookies getting less attention and performing will take some pressure off and defenses will focus on them a little more. This will also show a little bit about Mistry as a coach when it comes to adjustments.

 

[SacTownKid]

5. And he put up absolutely monster stats.

Like tw said, I think G League success is a better indicator than summer league.

He's got to be better for sure. But theres a lot of sweeping conclusions being made over 1 poor offensive SL performance

Exactly. And summer league is chaos. These are literally players fighting for their lives just to make it to the G-league.

 

[Jdbraver137]

He looked like it for 5 whole minutes, that's all that matters haha.

Please, I assume you mean the scoring. Maxime was making good decisions keeping deflections and rebounds alive the rest of the game. Not just 5 min bro

 

[twslam07]

I think it's easy for people to excuse poor SL play because of these factors; however, basic talent should rise to the top. Less about him dominating and getting 20+ per game, but if he struggles getting his shot off, finishing at the rim, hitting the three, running the pick and roll, etc., in summer league, I'm just pretty skeptical its going to work for him. I don't think dominating at SL is necessarily an indicator of future success, but not standing out will be a concern. I feel like you should be able to watch a player in SL and say "yep, he's got it."

I mean yes and no.

Carter’s likely ceiling is a Caruso, Smart, Hart, DiVincenzo, etc. type. Those types aren’t known for generating offense. They are known for taking advantage of advantageous offensive situations usually caused by other offensive stars/engines. They’re also known for being good rebounders, good on-ball defenders, good team defenders, good decision makers, respectable shooters (some more than others), etc.

We’re asking Carter to play PG and be the offensive engine of this SL team….when he’s reportedly never played PG before in his life…after only being able to practice with this team 2-3 times. Maybe if he was touted as a very talented offensive player, it wouldn’t matter that much, but that’s not what Carter is touted as. Coming out of college he was touted as someone who could be an elite defender, elite rebounder, respectable shooter, respectable secondary ballhandler, connective passer/smart decision maker.

That is a role player skillset. High level role player but role player nonetheless. Now there was speculation about his offensive potential due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, & ability to get to the FT line, but he needed to prove his shot was for real (so far, he hasn’t shown that’s the case in the NBA) and work on his handle and finishing if he wanted to have a shot at being a very good offensive player. Like I said, that seemed like a long shot considering the amount of skills he’d need to develop & elevate, but he at least had the physical attributes to help him get there if he could put it all together.

 

[twslam07]

Yeah - it's lesser competition so players should be dominant at certain skills. There are certain other skills that won't show themselves because of the lesser talent and very short time together and some elements of PG play are a part of that. The areas that Carter is struggling however seem to be in the red flag category but his G-League play was not, so maybe give him time too demonstrate skills on a real "team".

Is Summer League lesser talent than the G-League? I actually would have thought the opposite but maybe I’m wrong?

For instance, you have guys like Cooper Flagg, Tristan Da Silva, Jace Richardson, DaRon Holmes, Dalton Knecht, Terrence Shannon Jr, Rob Dillingham, Nikola Topic, Ajay Mitchell, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, Devin Carter, etc. playing in the summer league when all of these guys are going to be on NBA rosters this year (not playing in the G-League).

I don’t know enough about the entire player composition of SL vs. G-League to have a definitive take, but I do know that there are players that play in the SL that will be on a NBA roster this season and not playing in the G-League. That makes me think SL has more talent.

Then on top of it having more talent, you add in the fact that these guys have 2-3 practices to get familiar with each other and you can get a lot of ugly, chaotic basketball (especially when you’re trying to learn/play PG for the first time in your life)

 

[sactowndog]

And you based your conclusion that he can't guard 3s on what??? His mixtape??? I love that you can conclusively state what a player will be and won't be off of no actual game experience, but then I am not allowed to use an actual game experience to point out the opposite.

I agree that 1 summer league game is about the smallest sample size you can rely on. But its more than you've got at this point...

No I’m basing it on the fact he is extremely undersized for a 3 and most (not all as Josh Hart proves) people his size struggle doing it night in and night out.

I also found it interesting our GM is talking about him as a back-up PG.

 

[Jdbraver137]

Is Summer League lesser talent than the G-League? I actually would have thought the opposite but maybe I’m wrong?

For instance, you have guys like Cooper Flagg, Tristan Da Silva, Jace Richardson, DaRon Holmes, Dalton Knecht, Terrence Shannon Jr, Rob Dillingham, Nikola Topic, Ajay Mitchell, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, Devin Carter, etc. playing in the summer league when all of these guys are going to be on NBA rosters this year (not playing in the G-League).

I don’t know enough about the entire player composition of SL vs. G-League to have a definitive take, but I do know that there are players that play in the SL that will be on a NBA roster this season and not playing in the G-League. That makes me think SL has more talent.

Then it seems like everyone goes for 30 in the g-league. I think SL is much harder to score.on top of it having more talent, you add in the fact that these guys have 2-3 practices to get familiar with each other and you can get a lot of ugly basketball (especially when you’re trying to learn/play PG for the first time in your life)

 

[hrdboild]

I mean yes and no.

Carter’s likely ceiling is a Caruso, Smart, Hart, DiVincenzo, etc. type. Those types aren’t known for generating offense. They are known for taking advantage of advantageous offensive situations usually caused by other offensive stars/engines. They’re also known for being good rebounders, good on-ball defenders, good team defenders, good decision makers, respectable shooters (some more than others), etc.

We’re asking Carter to play PG and be the offensive engine of this SL team….when he’s reportedly never played PG before in his life…after only being able to practice with this team 2-3 times. Maybe if he was touted as a very talented offensive player, it wouldn’t matter that much, but that’s not what Carter is touted as. Coming out of college he was touted as someone who could be an elite defender, elite rebounder, respectable shooter, respectable secondary ballhandler, connective passer/smart decision maker.

That is a role player skillset. High level role player but role player nonetheless. Now there was speculation about his offensive potential due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, & ability to get to the FT line, but he needed to prove his shot was for real (so far, he hasn’t shown that’s the case in the NBA) and work on his handle and finishing if he wanted to have a shot at being a very good offensive player. Like I said, that seemed like a long shot considering the amount of skills he’d need to develop & elevate, but he at least had the physical attributes to help him get there if he could put it all together.

I agree with all of this. And I also don't see why we should be expecting Carter to transform into some self-creation maestro at the highest level of basketball in order to keep his job on this team. Yes we currently lack a PG to run the offense but building a team isn't about taking your roster of square pegs and looking for which round hole you can best hammer them into. Let him be an off-ball PG and defensive swiss army knife -- other players have parlayed that skillset into starting jobs on championship level teams. That means finding an on-ball creation maestro at a different position and probably shifts some other priorities around a bit (maybe Nique Clifford's distribution skills are a better fit in a backcourt next to Carter than Keon Ellis would be, for instance). And maybe when we're shopping for our next superstar, we should go the point forward route instead of looking to add a scoring wing?

Bottom line: There's a lot to sort out for this team but I'd hate to see another promising young player discarded for no other reason than he doesn't seem to fit an immediate need for our current roster.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Is Summer League lesser talent than the G-League? I actually would have thought the opposite but maybe I’m wrong?

For instance, you have guys like Cooper Flagg, Tristan Da Silva, Jace Richardson, DaRon Holmes, Dalton Knecht, Terrence Shannon Jr, Rob Dillingham, Nikola Topic, Ajay Mitchell, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, Devin Carter, etc. playing in the summer league when all of these guys are going to be on NBA rosters this year (not playing in the G-League).

I don’t know enough about the entire player composition of SL vs. G-League to have a definitive take, but I do know that there are players that play in the SL that will be on a NBA roster this season and not playing in the G-League. That makes me think SL has more talent.

Then on top of it having more talent, you add in the fact that these guys have 2-3 practices to get familiar with each other and you can get a lot of ugly, chaotic basketball (especially when you’re trying to learn/play PG for the first time in your life)

Summer League has a mish mash of guys that just got drafted (and some second years who need work, though that number seems to be declining) along with guys who are auditioning for the G-League. I guess its debatable but when you also factor in that the summer league squads basically exist for maybe two-weeks whereas G-League is an actual team, unless you get a high profile one-on-one matchup between two FRPs odds are there's a massive competition drop off.

Maybe @SacTownKid's description of summer league just being chaos is more apropos.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1943461717385662824

I don’t know who this guy is but reading his report and watching yesterday game is like prophecy

 

[Capt. Factorial]

Summer League has a mish mash of guys that just got drafted (and some second years who need work, though that number seems to be declining) along with guys who are auditioning for the G-League. I guess its debatable but when you also factor in that the summer league squads basically exist for maybe two-weeks whereas G-League is an actual team, unless you get a high profile one-on-one matchup between two FRPs odds are there's a massive competition drop off.

Maybe @SacTownKid's description of summer league just being chaos is more apropos.

I agree with this answer. It's not really the talent level of Summer League that "brings it down". Remember, until a few years ago they were running a "G-League All-Stars" team at Summer League and that squad didn't really ever shine all that much.

You see more NBA-*ready* talent at Summer League than you do in the G-League, but the teams have been thrown together recently and had only a handful of practices before they're sent out there to play. And a lot of it is showcase for the up-and-comings, don't doubt that. When you've got a G-League team that is coached together for a year and built more closely around the concepts and schemes that the big squad is running, the "talent" level may be lower, but the technical execution is much better. Thriving in the G-League for something like a year (see: Keon Ellis) is a real good indicator that you've got something going. One game in Summer League is not really enough - or the right situation - to draw a big conclusion from.

Still, I did like what I saw from our two rooks in Game 1!

 

[The_Jamal]

I mean yes and no.

Carter’s likely ceiling is a Caruso, Smart, Hart, DiVincenzo, etc. type. Those types aren’t known for generating offense. They are known for taking advantage of advantageous offensive situations usually caused by other offensive stars/engines. They’re also known for being good rebounders, good on-ball defenders, good team defenders, good decision makers, respectable shooters (some more than others), etc.

We’re asking Carter to play PG and be the offensive engine of this SL team….when he’s reportedly never played PG before in his life…after only being able to practice with this team 2-3 times. Maybe if he was touted as a very talented offensive player, it wouldn’t matter that much, but that’s not what Carter is touted as. Coming out of college he was touted as someone who could be an elite defender, elite rebounder, respectable shooter, respectable secondary ballhandler, connective passer/smart decision maker.

That is a role player skillset. High level role player but role player nonetheless. Now there was speculation about his offensive potential due to his combination of length, strength, athleticism, & ability to get to the FT line, but he needed to prove his shot was for real (so far, he hasn’t shown that’s the case in the NBA) and work on his handle and finishing if he wanted to have a shot at being a very good offensive player. Like I said, that seemed like a long shot considering the amount of skills he’d need to develop & elevate, but he at least had the physical attributes to help him get there if he could put it all together.

But, which is why we need to give him time to ACTUALLY develop. Don't quit on him 500 minutes into his career because the instant results aren't there. And honestly, he already showed the defensive impact last year. Kings were like 3 points better defensively with him on the floor. Tiny sample of course. I think if you ran him 20-25 minutes in the cason Wallace, Caruso role, you'd see great results from game 1.

I'd like to explore what his ceiling as a lead ball handler can be though. Fully vet if he can be that jrue Holiday ceiling type

 

[The_Jamal]

Is Summer League lesser talent than the G-League? I actually would have thought the opposite but maybe I’m wrong?

For instance, you have guys like Cooper Flagg, Tristan Da Silva, Jace Richardson, DaRon Holmes, Dalton Knecht, Terrence Shannon Jr, Rob Dillingham, Nikola Topic, Ajay Mitchell, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, Devin Carter, etc. playing in the summer league when all of these guys are going to be on NBA rosters this year (not playing in the G-League).

I don’t know enough about the entire player composition of SL vs. G-League to have a definitive take, but I do know that there are players that play in the SL that will be on a NBA roster this season and not playing in the G-League. That makes me think SL has more talent.

Then on top of it having more talent, you add in the fact that these guys have 2-3 practices to get familiar with each other and you can get a lot of ugly, chaotic basketball (especially when you’re trying to learn/play PG for the first time in your life)

SL is more talent, but id argue its essentially AAU with like 2 practices. G League is an actual basketball league where you work with the same coaching staff, same teammates, etc for a year. G League is far closer to a minor league system than SL ever will be.

 

[SacTownKid]

Please, I assume you mean the scoring. Maxime was making good decisions keeping deflections and rebounds alive the rest of the game. Not just 5 min bro

I'm saying he looked like the next Joker for 5 minutes, lol.