The Clippers (2-2) wrap up the Summer League against the Miami Heat (1-3). It’s been a mostly quiet summer league for the Clippers, who didn’t have many roster players in Vegas in the first place and loss 2nd round rookie Moussa Diabate to injury after two games and second-year guard Jason Preston to COVID after three. Both those guys will presumably be out tonight, and Brandon Boston, the last roster player, might not play either after showing off in the Clippers’ win yesterday.
Even outside of keeping their key players healthy, it’s also normally tradition to give everyone in Summer League a chance to really play as a demo tape for G-League and international teams, and the summer Clippers have a number of players who have barely seen the court. If the Clippers do want to give guys like Isiah Brown, Trey McGowens, Michael Devoe, Lucas Williamson, and Justin Bean real run, they might also limit the minutes of Jay Scrubb and Xavier Moon, who don’t have NBA contracts but are at least committed to the Clippers’ training camp.
The Clippers have no roster spots available outside of a two-way and the 15th spot, and it seems unlikely anyone in Summer League will get that full roster spot. However, there are a few guys who have impressed enough to earn training camp deals to earn a shot at the two-way, potentially, including Jarrell Brantley, Cam Reynolds, and Reggie Perry. The Clippers will get their last chance to look at these guys in a semi-competitive setting, so I’d expect all of them to get a decent chunk of minutes.
On the Heat side, there’s not much. Their roster guys, like Omar Yurtseven, Nikola Jovic, and potentially Jamaree Bouyea, did not play yesterday, and I’d guess they won’t today either. There are a few familiar names on the roster, like Mychal Mulder (played on a two-way for the Warriors) and Javonte Smart (Celtics), and both should probably play since the Heat waived them from their two-way deals this morning. Still, this promises to be a low-stakes affair, even by Summer League standards.
Leave your comments on the Clippers’ game against the Heat below in the close to the 2022 Summer League.
