A Look Back at the Orlando Summer League

Before we get too entrenched in Vegas Summer League stories and stats, I thought it would be a good idea to take a look back at some notable performances from Orlando.  I'm going to focus on players who have seen a lot of D-League time as well as some other guys who came into Summer League without a guaranteed spot on an NBA roster (though there are a few second-round picks sprinkled in here).  As with the daily breakdowns, the emphasis here is on the positive - there certainly were players who could've done better, but this is about letting you know who played his way onto NBA radars (or should've, anyway), not telling you that Terrence Williams needs to work on his defense.  You'll have plenty of time to figure that one once the season starts.  Oh, and I'm mainly looking at guys who played a lot.  Josh McRoberts, for instance, has a decent rebounding average but he played in only two games.  With all that as preface, let's take a look at ten players who did well for themselves down in Orlando.

Kasib Powell (6'7") - Yeah, yeah, he's been contributing to RU, but Powell really did play very well in Orlando.  He was the Magic team's second-best player all week behind NBA-er Ryan Anderson, and while his shooting wasn't always there, he ended up shooting 53 percent on threes, and he helped out in plenty of other ways with 23 rebounds in four games, eight assists, a pair of blocks and only three turnovers.  The Magic frontcourt gets more crowded seemingly by the day, but Powell would be a nice addition to the Orlando bench.

Richard Hendrix (6'9"F/C) - Hendrix had a great week rebounding-wise, averaging 15 per 48 minutes, and his 29 rebounds came about evenly divided between offense and defense, so he was taking care of business at both ends of the floor.  He also shot 56 percent through four games, and had seven blocks.  With Marcin Gortat headed to Dallas and Tony Battie gone as part of the Vince Carter trade, Hendrix wouldn't be a bad backup in the middle for the Magic.

D.J. White (6'9" F) - White was the best OKC rebounder on a per-game basis and was a pretty efficient scorer overall, with 54 points on 41 total shots.  White had some injury problems when he was with Tulsa last season, but he's talented enough to play for the Thunder this year

Chris Lofton (6'2" G) - I didn't talk about Lofton much on a game-by-game basis, and looking back I have no idea why not.  He came into camp with a reputation as a good three-point shooter, and Summer League only emphasized that - he made 60 percent of his threes.  He didn't really offer much else, with a combined five rebounds, three assists and three steals in five games, but he also didn't turn the ball over (four total), and he had the best free-throw percentage on Boston's entire roster, a respectable 89 percent.  If teams are looking for an outside shooter, Lofton is one of the best prospects coming out of Orlando.

Russell Robinson (6'1" G) - Robinson was running the point for Orlando all week, and he did a pretty good job of it.  He didn't shoot the ball particularly well, but he ran the offense and distributed the ball pretty well.  About eight assists per 48 minutes, and he also had five total assists, tied for most on the team.

A.J. Price (6'0" G) - I'm somewhat skeptical that Price will make an NBA roster this year (he was arrested for stealing laptops while at UConn), but if he spends a few years in the D-League he might get a shot.  His Orlando performance demonstrated that he may deserve one, as he shot 57 percent on his three-pointers and led the Pacers team in assists, averaging a little under 7 per 48 minutes, which is decent for a guy who's not really a true point guard.  He also had only five turnovers all week.  The downside to his performance is that he shot only 8-20 on two-pointers and didn't get to the line very much (only three free throws in five games), but the talent is there.

Kevin Rogers (6'9" F) - Rogers had a few disappointing final years at Baylor, but he showed some skill in Orlando, with 43 points on 34 shots and 22 total rebounds in five games, which averages out to about eight and a half per 48 minutes, which is solid.  He also led the Boston team with seven total blocks.  He may need a year or two of committed development time before he's completely ready, but his performance here intrigues me, and I think a team that doesn't need an immediate contribution would do well to take a look (Houston, I'm looking in your direction).

Josh Duncan (6'9"F) - Duncan may not be all that athletic, but he did a great job scoring this week, making seven of his nine three-pointers and shooting 72.4 percent overall.  He also finished with respectable rebounding and free-throw shooting numbers.

Kevin Kruger (6'2" G) - Kevin Kruger didn't finish the week with great shooting percentages, but he did a good job running the point when he was on the court and finished averaging just over eight points per 48 minutes.  He didn't get a ton of playing time, but he was solid enough that he might get a preseason look.  He still dribbles the ball too much, but that hasn't held other guys back.  He also averaged one turnover about every 11 minutes.

Kevin Lyde (6'10" F/C) - Lyde didn't play very many minutes either, but he rebounded the ball really well when he did play - 21 total rebounds in 64 minutes, just under 16 per 48 minutes.  He shot under 50 percent on free throws, though.  Yikes.