2025 NBA Summer League Notebook

  • By SportsEthos Staff

    Last Updated on July 23, 2025 10:04 pm by Keston Paul | Published: July 8, 2025

    Welcome to the 2025 NBA Summer League notebook! We’re going to keep it light and breezy with scattered thoughts from each day of action from a few SportsEthos mainstays. It’s important to remember that Summer League rarely gives us something meaningful for near-term fantasy purposes, but it’s just nice to have some — any — basketball action in the dog days of summer. Seeing actual games is a nice reprieve from the cap machinations that dominate the news this time of year and it’s always fun to see the stars of tomorrow make their first impressions.

    Before we get into the daily notes, a few things to keep in mind as you watch the games.

    Most rookies won’t matter in fantasy.

    It’s exciting to see them and you’ll end up with lots of crazy stat lines and highlights, but the performance in Vegas (or California or Utah) is not indicative of immediate success. Last season, there were no rookies in the top-125 of the 9-cat rankings when the dust settled. The two closest were Kel’el Ware (No. 126) and Zach Edey (No. 134) so beware the hype. If you want to make the argument that last year’s draft class was weak, that’s fair. In 2023, fantasy’s best rookies were Victor Wembanyama (No. 7 and obviously an anomaly), Brandon Miller (No. 116), Dereck Lively (No. 120) and Amen Thompson (No. 138). If you want to be charitable, Chet Holmgren finished at No. 20 after missing his entire first season due to injury. Outside the generational prospects or guys whose games have an obviously strong fantasy stat set, you shouldn’t be counting on a lot.

    Summer League results aren’t indicative of early success.

    Consider last season’s All-Summer League squads:

    First Team: GG Jackson, Jordan Miller, Reed Sheppard, Scotty Pippen Jr., Kel’el Ware
    Second Team: Bub Carrington, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Jarace Walker, Jalen Wilson (the MVP), Donovan Clingan

    Ware, Pippen and Clingan were the only players to hit the top-175 and only Ware was inside the top-160. Carrington started more often than not but was limited by a thin stat set. Wilson was dynamite and generated some sleeper appeal thanks to Brooklyn’s incoming tank job, but that didn’t amount to anything. Sheppard and Miller weren’t even in their rotations. Jaquez and Walker were just bit parts.

    From 2023, you have:

    First Team: Keyonte George, Sam Merrill, Cam Whitmore (the MVP), Hunter Tyson, Orlando Robinson
    Second Team: Javon Freeman-Liberty, Max Christie, Xavier Moon, Emoni Bates, Jabari Smith Jr., Jalen Wilson (again!)

    George had a strong second half but was build-dependent and Whitmore was limited to streaming value in injury spots. Smith was a top-90 guy but that’s about it. Robinson couldn’t supplant Thomas Bryant in the rotation. Bates couldn’t get out of the G League. Moon and Tyson never left their benches and Freeman-Liberty didn’t even break camp with the Bulls, ending up buried on the Raptors depth chart. A strong Summer League usually doesn’t mean a lick when the real games begin.

    Some things do matter.

    The most important thing to watch for in general is how second- and third-year players fare. They are expected to dominate in this setting. It’s a bit unfair in that anything short of impressive performances gets graded as a disappointment, but you really don’t want to see a veteran player look bad. If a guy with NBA experience is drowning in Vegas, they usually aren’t long for the league. A bad Summer League from a third-year player is a blaring red flag. That said…

    Remember the roles.

    Success doesn’t always look like you’d expect in Summer League. It’s a great environment for teams and players to try new things with low stakes and you’ll often see players wear different hats, so to speak. Way back in the day, Vegas was the proving ground for Pascal Siakam to take on lots of ball-handling and distribution responsibilities, and we know how that turned out. If a player’s stat line looks a little light, it’s worth watching the games to see exactly how they’re being deployed. Are they doing the things you’d expect to see them do alongside proven NBA talent? Are they being tasked with duties that they’ve never had before? It’s all part of development but it can obfuscate things for fantasy managers.

    Onto the notes!

    California Classic and Salt Lake City

    July 5

    VJ Edgecombe (28-10-4, one steal, two blocks, one triple) showed controlled use of his athleticism as he was rarely rushed, but still quick and explosive. Ball-handling wasn’t perfect, nor was his 3-point shot, but he did hit a couple good midrange looks too and was competing on defense as expected.

    Adem Bona dominated the Jazz frontcourt with his physicality, speed and leaping. He also had a couple nice pump fakes into straight-line drives and finishes. Hopefully he can secure the backup C spot for the Sixers.

    Ace Bailey let the game come to him in the first half, then forced some shots in the second half and was benched, but flashed the tools to potentially be good on defense in time.

    Walter Clayton Jr. moved the ball well when he had it and also spot up nicely from three off-ball.

    Ajay Mitchell got to the rim with ease (24 points) and he seemed a step ahead of everyone.

    Nikola Topic’s ability to get the rim stood out alongside his passing and defensive instincts in passing lanes. He also hit a couple threes (an area of uncertainty in his game). Nice to see him on the floor.

    Kasparas Jakucionis was willing to take the three, but the shots weren’t falling. Attempts are a better indicator than percentages for the small sample of Summer League.

    The more concerning notes with Jakucionis was him turning down chances to drive into the paint or take floaters that were there. That was an issue for him in college as well.

    Kel’el Ware is clearly too good for Summer League, as his size on the glass and finishing inside is just overwhelming the Spurs. I would like to see him apply himself more, but it’s also Summer League.

    Carter Bryant was a willing shooter but did nearly nothing with the dribble. He isn’t exactly dispelling notions of just being an off-ball contributor on offense.

    Vlad Goldin looked fairly rigid both on offense and defense. The Heat appeared to be playing a zone when he was in the game, speaking to his lack of mobility on the perimeter defensively.

    July 6

    David Jones-Garcia, (a big wing or forward around 6’4″ to 6’6″) got some ball-handling reps en route to 25 points, four triples and three assists for the Spurs and that was interesting.

    Warriors No. 56 pick Will Richard showed excellent active hands on defense (two steals) and was willing to fire away from deep (two threes), so there might be some interesting 3-and-D stuff there.

    Kasparas Jakucionis is failing to get much separation on his dribble. Part of that can be chalked up to the solid defense from Bronny James Jr. At least Jakucionis is making smart passing reads for the most part, even as the shot continues to not fall for him.

    On the topic of Bronny James Jr., he wasn’t adding too much on offense besides hitting two triples.

    Dalton Knecht had a wretched offensive game. His handle was inadequate to run basic actions as he turned the ball over four times. For someone of his age, you would hope for a more dominating performance.

    July 7

    Nikola Topic’s ball-handling, changes of direction and pace are just too much for defenders to keep him in front. He made a ton of great reads and should have had more than five assists (some no-look dimes led to FTs and teammates missed open looks), but needs to hit more shots. The Thunder should definitely have space for him in the rotation so Topic is the rare Summer League guy who is worth watching closely.

    Ajay Mitchell did not shoot well from the field, but his driving got him to the line a ton and he cruised to a solid game in an easy win. He’s been a lot better than the level of competition so far.

    Johni Broome has hit two triples in each of his first two games for Philly (corner and wing 3s on Monday) and can run some DHOs, set hard screens and positions himself well to grab rebounds on both ends.

    Brice Sensabaugh broke the Salt Lake Summer League scoring record with 37 points (previous holder was a 35-point Jonathan Simmons game in 2016) and his shooting/microwave scoring ability have made him look head and shoulders above the competition so far (19 points, five threes on July 5 as well). Sensabaugh could be making a case to start at SF next season, pushing Lauri Markkanen to PF.

    Cody Williams has put on a little muscle, but most importantly, he looks a lot more decisive and a little more aggressive. He was very, very passive as a rookie and that led to empty lines when given minutes. He has had a 14-point and an 18-point game so far.

    Ace Bailey looked a lot more confident and played in the flow of the game on his way to 18-7-3 with three triples. Some of his shot-making skills (nice fadeway midrange bucket & a no-dip three) also stood out.

    Cam Spencer (recently got a two-year, $4.5 million fully-guaranteed deal with the Grizzlies) showed off his movement shooting and feel for space/linking the play as he put up 23-6-3, one steal, one block and seven triples. He may be one to monitor in deep leagues for his sophomore season if he can break into a rotation role off the bench.

    July 8

    Johni Broome had a rough game. His fantasy line looks alright (12 boards, two blocks, one steal being the highlights), but the eye test was not encouraging. He looked slow on defense and rarely in position to contest shots at the rim. If his post-up style offense doesn’t translate to the NBA, that level of defense won’t work at the NBA.

    Justin Edwards was positive as a simple scorer. His handle wasn’t sufficient to take on more extensive offensive actions like running pick-and-rolls. As long as he can finish plays either through quick drives to the basket or catch-and-shoots, he’ll be just fine as a rotation wing.

    Hunter Sallis had some moments of burst and pop but wasn’t consistent enough for anything more than that.

    Jalen Hood-Schifino existed in this one, mainly running basic offensive sets. He did rack up seven assists, but he wasn’t often generate advantages for the team.

    Judah Mintz was aggressive, constantly getting downhill and to the free-throw line. His box score was rather empty (just the 26 points on 9-of-15 from the field and 8-of-9 for the line, three assists and three steals), but at least he displayed a high-level skill.

    Pelle Larsson looked like he was on a higher wavelength than everyone else, which should be expected from someone who got real NBA minutes last season. He processed the floor faster, manipulated the defense and drew contact smartly to get to the line.

    Keshad Johnson did a bunch of little things on offense, showing a diverse attack with spot-up threes, post-ups, lob-catching and so on. He also competed a bit on defense and brings a high motor.

    Kasparas Jakucionis continues to make good reads, but also continues to shoot poorly. He may just be in a rut and lacking some confidence with his shot.

    Taran Armstrong shows good playmaking feel, but it is unclear if he scores well enough to be a lead bench guard.

    Alex Toohey was very rough on offense, but showed flashes of being switchable on defense. May not be fully ideal on quicker guards though. Hopefully he adds some strength to hold down bigger forwards or wings.

    Isaiah Collier’s box sheet won’t fully show it, but his processing and pace was well beyond most that play in Summer League. He was zipping passes left and right all over the court while using his natural burst and athleticism to get towards the paint. If the scoring efficiency ever comes around, watch out.

    Kyle Filipowski possessed a monster stat line yet displayed some limitations that could hinder his minutes at the NBA level. He often was slow in defensive rotations and had to resort to fouling to prevent easy baskets. It’s clear he can affect the game in numerous ways, positive and negative. That said, the upside should intrigue you more than the downsides scare you.

    Elijah Harkless showed some nice two-way play throughout the game. He will be entering the second season on a two-way contract, so there’s a chance he figures into the Jazz rotation at some point throughout the season.

    Walter Clayton Jr. had a tale of two halves, as he struggled in the first one but then got hot in the second half. With the threat of his pull-up jumper, we could see that be a frequent theme for the sparkplug combo guard.

    Nikola Topic didn’t have his best game, as the defensive pressure yielded some dribbling turnovers. He also had some ambitious passes that more often succeeded than not. His upside as an on-ball option on offense remains apparent.

    Brooks Barnhizer was a solid connective piece. He did a ton of the little things in terms of dribbling, passing, finishing, and defensive rotations that coaches love to see. His lack of athleticism could hold him back, but maybe he works his way into the rotation at some point in the season.

    Darius Bazley is deservedly getting some buzz after multiple good performances. Of course, his physicality and poise are a cut above as an older player, but his versatility on defense and seemingly improved shooting plus creation on offense are also standing out. He had 27 points and 13 rebounds and might be in contention for another NBA shot.

    Dalton Knecht’s game has looked ugly when asked to create. However, he reminded us that he is a lethal spot-up shooter and can score in simpler ways as he was the reason for the fourth-quarter comeback on his way to 25 points, four triples and eight rebounds.

    David Jones-Garcia stood out on offense again with some solid handles, pull-up shooting, spray-out passes, calm and patience with a line of 25 points, six rebounds, five dimes and three triples. He is making a claim for a two-way contract to at least get some G League reps and spot NBA minutes.

    Vegas Summer League


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    July 8, 2025, 7:47 am