Alright, first the bad news.
Even if the games are fake.
As a reminder with Summer League, you have to force your brain to remember the rules.
I don’t make the rules, I just follow them.
But that doesn’t mean we ignore what we saw yesterday.
We watch, we overreact, and we move onto the next game.
I just went by what smart people told me and what smart people wrote in his draft evaluations.
Especially if the answer is “no he does not”.
Let me ask you, what do you see when you watch this?
I think the surprising part of his debut for all of us was the outside shooting.
There will be games he goes 4-6 and then another where he goes 1-6.
It’s the mentality that I care about most.
If that’s supposed to be one of his weaknesses and this is what it looks like already?
That’s a good sign.
I was also impressed with his energy on the glass.
There were definitely some growing pain moments.
But remember, Walsh isn’t here to be an ISO god or create his own shot.
He’s here to defend, do the little things, and knock down his open threes.
When you look at it that way, his debut was about as solid as you could ask for.
It’s not like he looked like Wemby out there who had never even played the sport before.
I’m hoping he starts today, because he certainly earned it.
- I didn’t know what to make of JD’s debut.
Given that this is his second time in Vegas, I’m looking for that noticable jump.
Remember when Payton Pritchard had to literally be shut down because he was too good?
I dunno if I needthatfrom JD, but I need to see a noticeable difference.
So why is he in this section?
Because of what he did in the 2nd half
This roster needs playmaking right?
Well, 14/4/11/2 will certainly do the trick.
If there’s any time to work on that stuff, it’s in Vegas.
The Bad
- Let’s just talk about the obvious.
The Heat are the Celts boogeyman until further notice.
I mean we just can’t get away from these guys.
The annoying part was it happened just like the real team collapsed.
No ball movement, gross 3P shooting down the stretch, and the turnovers, my god.
Am I talking about Summer League or every single playoff series these teams have had since 2020?
Enough already for the love of fucking christ.
- It was too bad Banton wasn’t active.
My hope is he plays today, because I want to see this 6'7 PG up close.
Same thing with the euro sniper Vincent Valerio-Bodon.
- Udoka Azubuike might be massive, but I think he might just be too slow.
Not just his running speed, but his reactions.
I would not classify him as a quick twitch player.
Maybe he sticks around in Maine, but I’m not expecting another Kab situation or anything like that.
The Ugly
- I don’t want to be mean, but everything Justin Champagnie did in this game.
Well OK maybe that’s too harsh.
If someone like Jay Scrubb outplays him, would it shock me if that’s a wrap for Champagnie?
He did not look like a guy that has actual NBA experience (41 games).
It’s never a great sign when a guy like that looks like the worst player on the floor.
The good news is we’re back again today against the Wizards.
