The Story On...
The
Atlanta Hawks...
The Hawks figure to have a decent summer league with good perfomances from at least two high level players.
Shelden Williams and
Marvin Williams are both out to justify their respective draft positions, look for good averages from both of these players. A player who could really step up and show what he is worth is
Solomon Jones, he has great shot blocking ability and has shown in workouts that he can score in the low post against good talent... just remember, this is the summer league.
The
Boston Celtics...
The Celtics look ready to show of their numerous young and talented players in this years summer league. Look for players like
Gerald Green,
Tony Allen and
Al Jefferson to show what they can do when plenty of minutes are given to them, while
Sebastion Telfair should be out to prove the Blazers let go of another young talent too early. Don't sleep on rookie
Rajon Rondo either, although he will be coming of the bench he should put up respectable numbers.
The
Charlotte Bobcats...
The Bobcats have plenty of young players that are ready and willing to use this summer league to show their skills and hopefully grab a spot on the starting lineup.
Sean May and
Raymond Felton could both grab starting PF and PG spots respectively, with a move to center for
Okafor. The real question with this summer league team is "How will
Adam Morrison perform?". With
Morrison being the star of this team and having
Felton's pinpoint passes finding him wide open, expect great numbers.
The
Chicago Bulls...
The Bulls look like they are ready to take a serious run at the NBA championship. Their summer league roster is on par with their regular season counterparts, they look to be one of if not the best team in the summer league this year.
Thabo Sefolosha and
Tyrus Thomas should show their worth, while Chris Duhon will run the team and most likely put up some solid numbers.
Mike Sweetney will need a strong summer league performance to show the Bulls he's worth giving more playing time to.
The
Cleveland Cavaliers...
The Cavaliers nabbed
Shannon Brown in the first round, and he looks to be worth it too. Although considered small,
Brown plays bigger than he is, plus he can play either the 1 or the 2 guard spots. When he has a small PG on him he can post them up using his strong body, if he has a taller 2 guard on him, he can go right around them and take it to rack.
Daniel Gibson was another solid pick for the Cavs, and could eventually develop into their starting PG during the season even. Look for the Cavs to have a a few solid players and one other standing out, thats
Shannon Brown.
The
Dallas Mavericks...
The Mavs hoped they would be able to grab another
Josh Howard at the end of the 1st Round. They got Michigan State guard
Maurice Ager.
Ager is a solid player with good fundamentals and great athleticism, yet it is doubtful whether he will reach
Howard's skill level as quickly, if ever. The Mavs summer league team figures to win quite a few games, considering they have
Devin Harris at the helm, who should put up big numbers against lower level competition.
The
Denver Nuggets...
Not much to say about the Nuggets,
JR Smith is refreshed and should have a succesful summer league, and undrafted rookie frenchman
Diawara looks solid.
Moochie Norris is looking to grab a roster spot so expect solid numbers and good veteran savvy and leadership from him.
Julius Hodge will have a chance to show his skills, an
Nene will use the summer league to get back into shape after his season ending injury a season ago.
The
Detroit Pistons...
Rookie
Will Blalock will show why he deserves to play in the NBA. He should have no problem racking up assists with high scoring shoting guard
Flip Murray running the wing.
Nazr Mohammed will try to prove he can fill the gaping whole left by
Ben Wallace's departure, expect solid scoring and very high rebounding statistics.
Ndudi Ebi gets another chance at the NBA, we'll see if he makes the most of it.
The
Golden State Warriors...
The Warriors have three young big men looking to showcase there skills in this years summer league. Look for
Chris Taft,
Ike Diogu and rookie
Patrick O'Bryant to put up great defensive numbers and
Mickael Pietrus and
Devin Brown to handle the scoring.
Monta Ellis looks like hes ready to show why he belongs, and that coming out of high school was not a mistake. The Warriors look solid.
The
Houston Rockets...
With arguably the only player in the draft that can rival
JJ Redick's range and touch, the Rockets look set to show of their future. Although they don't have any young phenoms, they have solid young backup players and a couple capable of nabbing a starting role.
Luther Head will come off the bench and have a good summer league showing while
Vassilis Spanoulis should show his skills as a point guard.
The
Indiana Pacers...
The Pacers are another team looking to show off their future.
Danny Granger should be solid, and
Sarunas Jasikevecius should be able to have his way against the young and inexperienced competition.
James White could be a real suprise, he could develop into a great defender and is extremely athletic, if he was place in the NBA dunk contest right now, he would probably not have much trouble winning it. If
Stephen Jackson or
Jamaal Tinsley are traded during the season, don't be suprised to see
White start.
The
LA Clippers...
Shaun Livingston will be able to show of his flashy passing and should dominate angainst the smaller point guards in this years summer league. We will finally get to see what
Korolev can do when given the chance, and
James Singleton should dominate the boards.
Chris Kaman will play this season, and
Tim Thomas will use the summer league to mesh with a few of his new teammates. This instantly gives the Clips one of the best frontlines in this years summer league.
The
LA Lakers...
With
Maurice Evans pulling out of summer league competition, this gives
Danilo (J.R) Pinnock the chance to show he can play at this level.
Von Wafer will most likely take a seat on the bench, but play a key role.
Jordan Farmar will show the rest of the league why he should be the starting point guard for the Lakers, and
Andrew Bynum could show how improved he has become.
The
Memphis Grizzlies...
Johnson,
Warrick,
Lowry and
Gay are all Grizzlies players with huge potential. Expect
Johnson to grab plenty of rebounds and use his wide body to bruise opponents frontlines and score off easy dunks.
Kyle Lowry will be solid, and
Hakim Warrick should impress and make for some great highlights.
Rudy Gay will be looking to make the Houston Rockets just look plain stupid,
Jerry West raves about
Gay being a player capable of being an all star in each of his NBA years, we'll see flashes of that brilliance soon enough.
The
Miami Heat...
Coming right off an NBA championship, the Heat will send two great young players to the summer league,
Dorrell Wright and
Udonis Haslem.
Wright will show his versatility and silky smooth style of play, while
Haslem, coming off a terrific playoffs performance, should just plain dominate.
Quinn,
Gansey and
Horton will all fight for their invitations to training camp.
The
Milwaukee Bucks...
Mo Williams,
Charlie Villanueva and
Andrew Bogut should be able to help the Bucks to a near perfect record this coming sumer league.
Villanueva uses this chance to mesh with his new teammates and rookie
David Noel should show he's athletic as anyone this year. Look for
Bogut to dominate and easily average 20 and 10.
The
Minnesota Timberwolves...
The Wolves managed to get a player many people are calling the "Next
Dwyane Wade" in this years draft.
Randy Foye figures to be the focal point of this team and should be up there in terms of scoring this year.
Rashad McCants is coming of injury to show he hasnt lost a step and can still score with the best of them, and
Bracey Wright should prove that he belongs here, and not the D-league.
The
New Jersey Nets...
Everyone was suprised when
Marcus Williams fell into the Nets hand late in the first round, but don't sleep on fellow rookie and former UConn teammate
Josh Boone.
Boone should be able to rack up the reabounds and blocks using his long frame to reach the shots of lower level players.
Antoine Wright should have a solid league, but the real question is "Will
Marcus Williams prove the critics wrong?"... we'll find out.
The
New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets...
It is just plain unfair to put
Chris Paul in the summer league team. He is coming off a great rookie season and should have absolutley no problem at all dominating the other PG's during the league (Barring a breakout performance from
Livingston, which is entirely possible).
Cedric Simmons and
Hilton Armstrong should impress, and
Taquan Dean will battle for a spot on the team.
The
New York Knicks...
Renaldo Balkman. Maybe the Knicks didn't make a mistake after all?
Balkman may be incredibly raw but is very quick and strong, with huge leaping ability. Although it shouldnt be too hard playing in the post (even at 6'7) during the summer league, the NBA is a different story.
Mardy Collins could suprise alot of people, and
Channing Frye will be solid as always.
The
Orlando Magic...
The Magic figure to have the best roster this season, with the likes of speedy point guard
Jameer Nelson, dominating athletic big man
Dwight Howard, and the best shooter in this years draft (possibly in the last 20 years)
JJ Redick. Everyone is eager to see how
Redick will adjust to the NBA, but we will not have an answer until he plays at least 1 regular season game. He should be able to have his way this summer league, expect great percentages off open as
DH is double teamed on the regular.
The
Philadelphia 76ers...
Willie Green, who is coming off an injury figures to have solid stats, while highflyer
Rodney Carney handles most of the offensive responsibilities and
Samuel Dalembert sends inexperienced players shots sailing into the stands.
Louis Williams and
Shavlik Randolph could be suprises, but neither are likely to grab starting spots on the regular season team.
The
Phoenix Suns...
Another player coming off of an injury,
Amare Stoudemire, will use the summer league to get back into his rythm. If he decides to not just use this as some sort of workout, and plays the way he did 2 seasons ago, expect huge numbers and a great team record to boot, he should have his way against every post player barring
Dwight Howard.
Marcus Banks should have a solid season while
Raja Bell locks down on some of the biggest scoring threats this summer.
The
Portland Trail Blazers...
The Blazers have one of the most talented young rosters in the league right now, and their summer league version is no different.
Brandon Roy will impress with his well rounded and polished game, as will
LaMarcus Aldridge. The "Spanish Magician"
Sergio Rodriguez will have a chance to show what he's made of, and
Martell Webster could turn heads. Looks very promising.
The
Sacramento Kings...
Kevin Martin should dazzle, while slashing small forward
Fransisco Garcia will show what he is made of and how well he plays at both ends of the floor. Rookie
Quincy Douby will probably turn alot of heads with his outstanding shooting ability, and we should see a glimpse of this shhot first guards reeal playmaking ability. The Kings have alot of young talent, they look solid.
The
San Antonio Spurs...
Young PG
Beno Udrih has played well during his short time in the NBA and throughout this summer league he should be one of the best playmakers. Along with Udrih, the Spurs have
Matt Bonner,
Rich Melzerand
Fransisco Elson who will also play major roles this summer. Sato rounds out the lineup and hopes he'll make the cut for the regular season team come training camp.
The
Seattle SuperSonics...
With three great young big men that are hardly scratching the surface of their potential, the future looks bright for these Sonics.
Petro,
Sene and
Swift should all be able to dominate the boards, and
Sene especially will rack up the blocks with his quick reflexes and long arms. In the backcourt they have great playmaker
Luke Ridnour, and promising young frenchman
Gelabale. The sky's the limit for these youngsters.
The
Toronto Raptors...
Is
Andrea Bargnani the next
Dirk or the next
Skita? We'll be one step closer to figuring that question out after the summer league is over and done with.
Bargnani is the obvious star on this team going into the summer league, but newcomer and Euroleague MVP
Anthony Parker may well be coming out. Along we these two great playersnewcomers
Rasho Nesterovic and
Fred Jones, and highflying SF
Joey Graham
The
Utah Jazz...
The Utah Jazz have what looks to be a very bright future. At the core of this future are playmakers
Deron Williams, and
Dee Brown (who will now play in the summer league with
Derek Fishers absence), sweet shooting and fast improving
CJ Miles, and defensize stopper and versatile G/F
Ronnie Brewer. Look for the Jazz to have one of the best records this summer and great stats from this core group of young talent.
The
Washington Wizards...
With solid players
Jarvis Hayes and
Brendan Haywood dedicating their summer to this years league, the Wizards are set to dominate defensively with their solid role players. The Wizards right now have no real star going into the summer league, but this will most likely turn out to be
Andray Blatche.
Blatche, a talented young all rounder was shot last year during a carjacking, but now hes physically and mentally healed and looks like he could be one of the real breakout players this summer.
Last edited by
--- on Wed Jul 26, 2006 9:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.