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The Summer League is in full swing and there are a bunch of former Big Ten players in action. Though this is not an NBA site, many of these former Big Ten players are fighting for a roster position in the Summer League. Success in the pros is highly related to a program's success, which makes the Summer League highly relevant for many of the programs in the Big Ten. Here are some of the highlights from Day 3.
We detailed the full Summer League rosters last week and now we are going to be following those players during their games this summer. Here are the highlights so far:
With that, let's take a look at how the Big Ten performed on Day Four of the Summer League.
2014 NBA Summer League Day 5 Stats
Detroit Pistons
- Brian Cook - Illinois
- Game 4 - 22 mins, 14 pts, 6 rebs, 2 asts, 0 blks, 1 stl
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David Lighty - Ohio State
- Game 4 - 10 mins, 0 pts, 2 rebs, 2 asts, 0 blks, 0 stls
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Christian Watford - Indiana
- Game 4 - DNP
Oklahoma City Thunder
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Mitch McGary - Michigan
- Game 4 - 23 mins, 15 pts, 2 rebs, 1 ast, 2 blks, 1 stl
Philadelphia 76ers
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Aaron Craft - Ohio State
- Game 4 - 7 mins, 1 pt, 0 rebs, 1 ast, 0 blks, 1 stl
Day Five Thoughts
First, here is my intro I am putting in each of these posts:
"Please insert a "grain of salt" warning with everyone of my statements regarding the Summer League. The competition is much different than your typical NBA regular or postseason game. Frankly, you just aren't going to run into your LeBron or Durant type of players in the Summer League. This means that there are some weaknesses in players that just don't get exposed in these type of scenarios. Having said that, there were a few things worth noting in the first two days of Summer League action."
By this point, I am going to start repeating myself, but I am still going to say it. Mitch McGary came down with another big game. A few weeks ago, people were actively discussing how long McGary would have to take before he was really ready to hit the court. All of those concerns are more than out the window at this point. The former Wolverine has been tearing it up and for good reason.
Here is a take from SBNation's Oklahoma City Thunder site on McGary's Summer League play.
Brian Cook also put up a decent game. Cook has actually had a pretty good Summer League so far. He's certainly a bit older than some of the other guys out there, but it's still encouraging to see him play well. As for the OSU guys, they really haven't been able to do a ton so far. Sure, Lighty has to play with KCP on the Pistons - maybe the best player in the entire Summer League so far - and Craft's best skill (defense), doesn't show up in these numbers, but at some point, these numbers really do have to be concerning. The red flag with Craft during his entire career was offense and so far, we have seen nothing to change that belief. Maybe a team takes a chance, but it's certainly going to be a question mark right now.
Stay tuned to BTP for more Summer League related posts and follow @tbeindit for updates.