First off, as always with Summer League, a huge grain of salt with everything. I value Summer League less and less every year – while it’s fun, and it’s good to see NBA rookies log their first minutes in team uniforms, it’s almost useless as an evaluation tool due to the slapdash nature of the rosters and the lack of team cohesion. That said, here are some thoughts.
Keaton Wagler
After a dismal first game in Summer League, Wagler was mostly pretty good the next three (he sat one game for rest on a back-to-back). Wagler ended up leading the Clippers in scoring at 18 points per game, though he did so fairly inefficiently (38.6% from the field, 33.3% from three). It’s such a small sample size that shots dropping or not does not matter to me much. In general, Wagler was bothered by pressure, had a tough time finishing around the rim, and had to work a lot to get clean looks. None of that was a surprise, however – it was always expected that he’d need to get stronger to really be an on-ball threat in the NBA. The good news is that his soft touch was apparent, as was his willingness to play off-ball. I also thought he had some good moments on defense. All in all, not an amazing showing that some fans may have dreamed of, but far from a disaster.
Nick Martinelli
In terms of raw production, Martinelli was the Clippers’ best rookie in Vegas. He averaged 14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game while shooting 60.4% from three and 50% from three (3-6). Martinelli’s overall basketball skill and knowhow was evident. He got to his spots, rarely forced the issue, and looked comfortable both in a catch-and-shoot setting as well as in a secondary role taking opponents off the dribble. Martinelli is definitely at an athletic disadvantage at the NBA level, but is just a flat out good basketball player that really impressed me with his rebounding and touch in the painted area on little floaters. The defense might be rough, yet there is a world where I could see Martinelli contributing to the Clippers in a 9th or 10th man role as soon as this year.
Baba Miller
Baba’s stats don’t pop (12 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1.4 blocks) but he had the best highlights and flashes of anyone on the Clippers in Vegas. His natural athleticism is noteworthy, allowing him several monster dunks and blocks. Baba also showed some playmaking acumen, making a number of nice reads both at the top of the key and off-the-dribble to get teammates easy looks. He’s still very raw, and I don’t think he’ll be ready for rotation minutes this year, but you can see why the Clippers signed him to a four-year deal with two seasons guaranteed: there’s a very interesting player in there if the shot develops or the defense evolves to be consistently positive.
Kobe Sanders
I’m still not really sure why Kobe was brought to Vegas. He played four games (sitting the last one) and looked pretty good. Kobe’s game is not flashy and not really translatable to “star” play like we’ve seen from Jordan Miller in previous years, so there was only one outing where he stood out, but he was competent and looked a cut above most of the Summer Leaguers. Nothing too exciting, but also a perfectly fine showing.
Cam Christie
Cam was unfortunately the only Summer League Clipper that had a truly disappointing outing in Vegas. As a third-year player with some real (if limited) NBA reps, fans were hoping Cam would look too good for Summer League. That did not happen. Cam played only the first two games, and seemed determined to drive to the rim rather than shoot (probably on coaching instruction). That would be fine, but the drives never really looked good, especially in the halfcourt, with a lot of missed shots and awful turnovers. Overall, Cam shot just 4/18 from the field in his two games (he missed the last three with ankle soreness) and had two assists to eight turnovers. It was a pretty bad showing from Cam, and one that could truly have him on the roster bubble as we head into the quiet part of the offseason.
Sean Pedulla
Sean Pedulla had an uneven Summer League, mixing in awful games (1 and 3) with terrific ones (2 and 5). Overall, it’s clear he’s a good, skilled point guard that can pass, shoot, and handle. The issue is that he’s absolutely tiny and not athletic enough to consistently break down NBA-level defenses. I didn’t really see anything that makes me think he’s a true NBA player, but the Clippers might keep him around like they did Xavier Moon a few years ago as a guy who can probably step in for 10-12 minutes in the NBA as a competent-enough reserve guard.
Norchad Omier
Omier had a similar Summer League to Pedulla, starting off poorly (Game 3 was a real lowlight) with a strong finish. Also like Pedulla, even though you can kind of see the vision with Omier (he’s strong, plays hard, and is a good screen setter and rebounder), he’s just too undersized to play center in the NBA unless he can shoot threes or become a better defender. When he’s playing well he’s fun to watch, but I don’t see a real role for him at the NBA level.
The Rest
The Clippers brought five other players to Vegas, but none of them played enough to warrant full write-ups. Jahmyl Telfort was definitely the “best of the rest”, looking like a competent “3 and D” guard and plugging into lineups with the Clippers’ rostered players with ease. Fletcher Loyer and Riley Kugel were both nondescriptly “fine” in their minutes without much to note in either direction. Themus Fulks played the least of any of the Clippers’ Summer Leaguers and was ok as a floor general PG. And lastly, Zach Freemantle was absolutely awful as a backup center, with almost no redeeming qualities. Sorry, Zach.