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It’s only the Summer League, but former Purdue forward Caleb Swanigan is picking up right where he left off at Purdue.
The former Boilermaker had an impressive sophomore season this past winter, earning consensus first-team All-American honors, as well as being named the Big Ten Player of the Year. He also averaged a double-double with 18.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, dominating down low throughout the year.
While it’s only the Summer League, Swanigan has shown that he doesn’t plan on slowing down as he prepares for his rookie season. After routinely producing double-doubles at Purdue this past season, the Portland Trail Blazer went on to average a double-double during the summer league. Swanigan ended up averaging 14.9 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.
Unfortunately for Swanigan he was edged by Lonzo Ball for Summer League MVP. However, he was named to the All-NBA Summer League First Team. That honor puts Swanigan in some solid company, as he’s the third Portland player to earn said honors, following Damian Lillard and Noah Vonleh.
The Blazers went on a run throughout the Summer League and would go on to lose to the Lakers in the title game by the score of 98-110. Swanigan impressed heavily on Monday, recording 25 points, 12 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals in the title game. It wasn’t enough against a Lakers team that hit 14 of 24 of their three pointers, though.
While Portland has a bit of a log jam in their frontcourt, the rookie has impressed so far and if he keeps it up he should find his way into the rotation when the season tips off this fall. It’s early, but Portland has to be pleased so far with their late first round selection.