Statman32s trip to the Las Vegas Summer League.

Probably the most fun time I have ever had at a sporting event. Saw 5 games, numerous NBA players, tons of former NBA players and a bunch of front office personnel. I recommend making a trip out to Vegas every year for this sumer league. You can get a all day pass for $20 bucks and watch the games, get drunk from anywhere you want to sit.

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Now I'll go over each game I saw and the top 5 players for each team IMO. I missed the Nuggets/Bucks game and only saw half of the Suns/Spurs and Philly/Raptors games.

Right now I'll start with the Pistons.

[B]Top 5 Pistons players:[/B]

1. Aaron Affalo- Was probably the best perimeter defender I saw all day. He was really hustling out there and wouldn't give his opponent a inch. Struggled with his shot but was doing a good job dishing it off.

2. Walter Sharpe- Every time he went to the bench he was the only guy sitting between all the coaches. You can tell they really have something invested in this kid because they were giving him a lot of individual coaching. Has nice length and skills but seems pretty raw. Was very aggressive.

3. Amir Johnson- More athletic than I thought. At first I didnt even really recognize him out there. Was a beast on the boards but he looks lost on the defensive end. Tended to play more outside on offense that I think he should have against the weak interior defense of the Mavs. Still very raw which is surprising considering hes been in the league 3 years.

4. Will Bynum- I was excited to see him play and he didnt disappoint. On the roster it said he was 6 foot but he looked a couple inches shorter than that. Has great speed but struggles finishing in traffic. Knocked down a lot of open jumpers but struggled to create a jumper for himself. His defenders were too lengthy for him and I think thats what hurts his chances of making it in the league. Still a very exciting player.

5. Cheikh Samb- Watched him in warm-ups and he looked very awkward. Needs to put on about 30 pounds to be taken seriously. Played just as awkward as he looked when he played in the paint. Did have a very nice jumper and he even took a technical foul shot for the Pistons. Even though hes awkward he still has the length to contest shots and get his hands on balls.

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Before I move on to the Mavericks I'll post some pictures I took. I forgot to bring my camera so I had to use my cell phone and some of them arent even worth showing. Still have to show must of them anyways so people can get a idea of what you will experience if you go to the SL.

[B]Terry Porter and Greg Popovich:[/B]
[IMG]http://i33.tinypic.com/dy41le.jpg[/IMG]
[B]
Suns/Spurs game:[/B]
[IMG]http://i35.tinypic.com/10gjj44.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i35.tinypic.com/s1udso.jpg[/IMG]
[B]
DJ Strawberry driving it:[/B]
[IMG]http://i38.tinypic.com/9i9tz7.jpg[/IMG]
[B]
Alvin Gentry/Robert Sarver/Piece of Steve Kerrs head:[/B]
[IMG]http://i34.tinypic.com/xoe685.jpg[/IMG]

[B]Derrick Low about to score on Gerald Green:[/B]
[IMG]http://i38.tinypic.com/2emojfc.jpg[/IMG]
[B]
JR Smith:[/B]
[IMG]http://i38.tinypic.com/et89ys.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i33.tinypic.com/2h3abtv.jpg[/IMG]
[B]
Robin Lopez:[/B]
[IMG]http://i38.tinypic.com/122dhjb.jpg[/IMG]
[B]
DJ Strawberry and the Suns bench:[/B]
[IMG]http://i36.tinypic.com/i3ujgg.jpg[/IMG]

hey man, thanks for the excellent thread. glad you had a great time.

see I knew you liked JR!!

JR Smith FTW!!

This thread makes me hate you less. Good stuff.

cool pics you lucky bastard.

Thanks everyone!

Anyways I'll move on to the Mavericks.

[B]Top 5 Mavericks players:[/B]

1. Shan Foster- Very fluid shooter and I came out very impressed with him. Didnt try to do too much and played great team ball. I think he was one of the more NBA ready players that got drafted low and IMO he could contribute a good 5-10 minutes a game as a 3 point shooter that wouldnt disrupt the teams ball movement like a lot of other young players would. The Mavs need to sign this guy if they havent already.

2. Gerald Green- During warm-ups he looked like a man among boys. Was draining shot after shot but he wasnt really participating with the rest of the team. Didnt start the game and came in only to play a lot of 1 on 1 ball without any real aggression. He had some nice moves and was the most skilled player out there but doesnt seem like a real team player which has been the knock on him his whole career. It seems like he needs some sort of mentor b/c it looked like he thought he was above playing with these guys which is very untrue. If he ever gets his mind together he could be a very good player but I dont see that happening. Very disappointing b/c I've always been on his little bandwagon.

3. James Singleton- Very active out there and seemed to be a decent shooter. Doesnt have a lot of skills but he has a NBA body that will help him contribute as a energy guy on a team. He was really aggressive on the boards.

4. Reyshawn Terry- Very active on the boards and showed a lot of aggression on the defensive end. Looked lost at times on offense and when he did get the ball he was out of control.

5. Keith McLeod- Most of the time he looked lousy on offense. His shot is pretty bad but he did play great defense out there. Was very aggressive on that end getting up in peoples faces and getting in passing lanes.

Did you watch Philly play at all?

[QUOTE=Jailblazers7]Did you watch Philly play at all?[/QUOTE]
I watched most of the 2nd half of that game but missed the 1st half b/c I was watching the 1st half of the Suns/Spurs game in the other arena. I'll move on to them when I have time but I'm getting ready to go see Batman right now. :bowdown:

[QUOTE=highwhey]This thread makes me hate you less. Good stuff.[/QUOTE]

second

Nice trip Statman32 :cheers:

nice pics stat. those blackberrys do nice job.. so it looks like with the crowd you must have had some good seats available?


btw, where's the upskirts? i know you got some dog...lol

Thanks for Mavs report.

[QUOTE=gts]nice pics stat. those blackberrys do nice job.. so it looks like with the crowd you must have had some good seats available?


btw, where's the upskirts? i know you got some dog...lol[/QUOTE]
Yep. You could sit pretty much anywhere you wanted. (Besides courtside which costs $100 and isnt worth it). Most of the time I sat in the 3rd row, halfcourt because if you sit any lower than that people walk in front of you.

Dont have any upskirts for you guys. :lol But I had to take some bball pics for my fellow ISHers. I wish I would have brought my digital camera though.

Damn, 20 bucks for a whole day pass sounds pretty good. How did DJ and Alando look out there? I'm especially interested in Strawberry's D

lucky dude

Great stuff Statman! Still not enough to make me fly over from the UK to take in Summer League for myself, but great reviews! Good pictures too. :cheers:

Really disappointed in Gerald Green, I hope his attitude drastically improves before/during training camp. I'm just hoping Jason Kidd and some of the other vets can knock some sense into him.

[QUOTE=ukballer]Great stuff Statman! Still not enough to make me fly over from the UK to take in Summer League for myself, but great reviews! Good pictures too. :cheers:

Really disappointed in Gerald Green, I hope his attitude drastically improves before/during training camp. I'm just hoping Jason Kidd and some of the other vets can knock some sense into him.[/QUOTE]

Do you like Prince Harry?

What was JR Smith doing!? Was he balling on people?

JR!!!!!!!

[QUOTE=w00terz]What was JR Smith doing!? Was he balling on people?

JR!!!!!!![/QUOTE]
:banana:


:bowdown:

[QUOTE=BlogOFfatman]Do you like Prince Harry?[/QUOTE]

Do yu liek spamming? :hammerhead:

[QUOTE=Jailblazers7]Did you watch Philly play at all?[/QUOTE]
[B]Top 5 76ers players:[/B] (Only saw most of the 2nd half)

1. Thaddeus Young- Besides Gerald Green he was probably the most athletic wing I saw. Got to the line at will and was very explosive. His shot looked pretty bad though. Defensively he used his athleticism to get into some passing lanes and why he didnt look great defensively, you could tell he had all the tools to be a good defender including good lateral quickness.

2. Jason Smith- As I said before he looked like Nick Fazekas but more athletic and with a little more power. Crashed the boards hard and has a pretty sweet jumper. Also has a very soft touch down low. I think hes a better player than Speights right now but Speights has the athletic ability to become a better player. From what I saw he can body up some guys but struggles moving laterally on defense.

3. Marreese Speights- Very athletic player that has a knack for getting past his guys but still is very raw. His moves were fluid but still very simple. Defensively he was quick enough to rotate over to block some shots but I didnt see a lot of good man defense from him. From what I saw Jason Smith looks a little more ready to be given minutes this next season but Speights has the tools and versatility to become a better player. Has a good form on his shot even though a lot of his jumpers didnt go in.

4. Jamont Gordon- His decision making wasn't very good and he got lost at times on offense. When he did get the ball he could get to the rim pretty easily and even drove in for the game winning bucket. (Although it should have been game tying but they called off Carrolls basket on the other end because of a BS offensive foul) Not a very good shooter but his length created some trouble on the defensive end.

5. Junior Harrington- The one player all week who looked to have a attitude. Seemed to do a lot of whining and was very cocky even though I dont think he should be. Was probably the best distributer on the 76ers and was doing a decent job getting to the rim and creating contact. Was more aggressive out there than Gordon. Didnt see much from him defensively to comment. If the 76ers need someone that can play now they will sign Harrington although Gordon has more potential. I actually think they should put Gordon in the D-League and look for a point guard elsewhere.

[QUOTE]4. Jamont Gordon- His decision making wasn't very good and he got lost at times on offense. When he did get the ball he could get to the rim pretty easily and even drove in for the game winning bucket. (Although it should have been game tying but they called off Carrolls basket on the other end because of a BS offensive foul) Not a very good shooter but his length created some trouble on the defensive end.
[/QUOTE]

Jamont FTW! :bowdown:

Did you watch the Spurs play?

[QUOTE=Wonder Bread Kid]Did you watch the Spurs play?[/QUOTE]
I saw the 1st half of the Suns/Spurs game. I'll talk about the Spurs players later but I did see Popovich before the game and he had the whole grizzly man look going. Looked like hes been drinking for weeks. :oldlol:

He always almost grows the bread during the offseason.

[QUOTE=statman32]I saw the 1st half of the Suns/Spurs game.[/QUOTE]

You watched the one game neither Ian or Hill played in. :(

Nice job Stat!!!!!!!

Thanks for sharing!

Great deal.

I was in Vegas this past week and decided to stop by the Thomas Mack centre to watch some games...

For $20 (all day pass - open seating), this was an amazing value. I watched the Dallas/Kings game and the Sixers/Wizards game...couldn't stay for the night games unfortunately.

As Statman said, lots of players, coaches, front office personnel, scouts, etc in a very informal environment. You can just go up to people and chat or shoot the sh!t with them, take pictures with them, etc.

If you are in Vegas, definitely worth checking out...

[QUOTE=Sham]Great deal.

I was in Vegas this past week and decided to stop by the Thomas Mack centre to watch some games...

For $20 (all day pass - open seating), this was an amazing value. I watched the Dallas/Kings game and the Sixers/Wizards game...couldn't stay for the night games unfortunately.

As Statman said, lots of players, coaches, front office personnel, scouts, etc in a very informal environment. You can just go up to people and chat or shoot the sh!t with them, take pictures with them, etc.

If you are in Vegas, definitely worth checking out...[/QUOTE]

Looks like I'm going to Vegas for the next Summer League. :pimp:

[QUOTE=3stat2]Damn, 20 bucks for a whole day pass sounds pretty good. How did DJ and Alando look out there? I'm especially interested in Strawberry's D[/QUOTE]
[B]Top 5 Suns players:[/B] (Watched the 1st half)

1. DJ Strawberry- Could get to any spot on the court he wanted. Looked very comfortable out there and is quicker than I thought. Made some nice passes after penetrating down low but did disappoint me once when he missed Robin Lopez when he had a guard on him. His shot didnt look too good but he was getting into passing lanes and was by far the best defender out there. Was the leader of the Suns.

2. Alondo Tucker- Everything he does looks effortlessly although he disappears at time. Needs to be more assertive about getting hisshot because when he does he can nail a mid-range jumper with ease. Still needs to develop more range on his shot b/c his 3 point shot looked shaky.

3. Robin Lopez- The coaches were on him the whole game. I dont know if its because he was doing the wrong things or if they just wanted to concentrate on coaching him. Was a beast on the offensive boards but wasnt getting good position on the defensive boards. Has the length to contest shots but a couple times was backed down and scored on by a smaller Spurs player. Offensively he was better than I thought and thats something I could see improving drastically as the season goes on. He has the skills and a decent touch.

4. Jared Jordan- Ran the offense like it was suppose to and helped everyone get touches. Made a couple nice drives that resulted in him getting to the line, where he drained his free throws with ease using his sweet stroke. Defensively he made some nice plays that led to fast breaks for the Suns, but overall he just seemed average out there. The two older ladies I was sitting by were raving about how nice of a kid he was and he even waved to them during warm-ups when he saw them.


5. Jiri Hubalek- This is where there is a big drop off in talent for the Suns. Hubalek looked confused on defense and committed a lot of stupid fouls. He was the recipient of a couple nice passes and did convert them which you cant say about Portlands bigs. Wasnt very good but I give him the 5th spot just because he didnt make stupid turnovers like the rest of the guys not listed.

So you didn't catch any Houston games huh?

Did you catch any Blazer games?

Jerryd Bayless has been running through the SL.