2015summerleague

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2015-summer-league-recap

2015 Summer League Recap

Joey Ramirez

Luck didn’t fall the Lakers’ way in Las Vegas, as the purple and gold entered Summer League with high expectations but bowed out with a 1-4 record. Though the Lakers had several evident problems — such as turnovers and cold shooting stretches — the young group managed to show promise as the tournament rolled on.

Clarkson Shines
Coming off his First Team All-Rookie season, Jordan Clarkson stood in the starring role for the Lakers. The San Antonio native averaged 16.8 points, while shooting 41.3 percent (31-of-75) from the field. Clarkson’s brightest performance also happened to be his first one, as he dropped a team Summer League-best 23 points against Minnesota.

Brown Provides Spark
Though he missed the first two games of Summer League due to an eye injury, Jabari Brown immediately picked up scoring responsibilities by tallying a team-best 20 points against New York in his first game back. Brown wound up being L.A.’s most potent scorer, leading the Lakers with 17.7 points on 40.5 percent shooting (15-of-37).

Randle Limited
Restricted to just 20.5 minutes per game by his coaches, Julius Randle’s numbers fell shy of his potential, as he averaged just 11.5 points on a 39.5 percent clip (15-of-38) with 4.0 rebounds. However, Randle displayed a knack for blowing past his defender and getting open looks at the rim, though he had trouble finishing. After the final game, Randle constantly described himself as “frustrated” with his first competitive basketball since fracturing his tibia in last year’s season opener.

Breakout for Russell
Selected second overall in the 2015 NBA Draft, the standard was set high for D’Angelo Russell, who had an up-and-down experience in Las Vegas. Through the first four games of Summer League, the Ohio State product shot just 31.7 percent (13-of-41) from the field. However, he put his potential on full display in the finale against Utah, pouring in 21 points on a 10-of-20 clip, which included a 5-of-6 fourth-quarter performance.

Black Stays Steady
No Laker gave a more consistent showing than Tarik Black, who averaged 9.2 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds, while shooting 18-of-26 (69.2 percent) from the field. Like Russell, Black saved his best display for the final game, notching L.A.’s only double-double of the tournament (16 points, 10 rebounds), while hitting six of his seven field goal attempts.

Others Flash Skill
Outside of the Summer League squad’s core five, the other roster members also put their talents on display. Larry Nance, Jr., who had a pair of blocks on No. 3 overall pick Jahlil Okafor, led L.A. with 1.6 steals per game, including three against both Philadelphia and New York. Robert Upshaw swatted three shots in the opener against Minnesota, while Anthony Brown logged starter experience in Jabari Brown’s three-game stead.

2015summerleague

2015 Summer League Recap

Summer League Wrap-Up

Postgame: Byron Scott (7/17/15)

Postgame: D'Angelo Russell (7/17/15)

Postgame: Jordan Clarkson (7/17/15)

Postgame: Julius Randle (7/17/15)

Postgame: Anthony Brown (7/17/15)

Postgame: Larry Nance Jr. (7/17/15)