Summer League Studs & Duds Day 4

Summer League is all about giving young guys an opportunity to gradually adjust to the NBA style of play and help players without a contract get on a training camp roster. Some players excelled during the fourth day of the 2014 Orlando Summer League while others struggled. Here’s our studs and duds for today:

Studs:

G Kalin Lucas – Memphis Grizzlies

14 points (5-7 FG), four rebounds and three assists

Kalin Lucas started for the Grizzlies on Tuesday and scored 14 points on an efficient 5-of-7 shooting performance. The point guard also added four rebounds and three assists to go with just one turnover in the game. Tasked with the job of guarding Magic point guard Victor Oladipo, Lucas held his own for most of the game and helped contribute toward Oladipo’s 4-of-12 shooting performance.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – Detroit Pistons

26 points (8-20 FG) and seven rebounds

Even a little ankle injury didn’t seem to stop Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on Tuesday as he dropped 26 points on the Miami HEAT, including a game-winning three-pointer with 6.6 seconds left in the game. Caldwell-Pope has clearly been one of the Summer League All-Stars thus far, as he scored 30 points and 26 points in the Pistons’ first two games, and added another 26 points in Game 3. At this point in the week, you might even ask why Caldwell-Pope is still out there playing and risking possible injury, which almost turned out badly on Tuesday.

G Ian Miller – Detroit Pistons

16 points (6-10 FG), four rebounds and three assists

Playing in only his second game of the Summer League, Ian Miller put in work during his 23 minutes on the floor on Tuesday. The Pistons opted to start Miller in the second half over starter Peyton Siva and Miller performed to expectations by scoring 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field. Miller should look to build upon this performance during the Pistons’ remaining games in the Summer League as there could be competition at the point guard position moving forward.

F Hollis Thompson – Philadelphia 76ers

14 points (5-10 FG), three rebounds and two assists

Hollis Thompson left the 76ers’ game on Tuesday feeling much better about his performance than the last time he played. Thompson rebounded from a 2-of-12 shooting performance on Saturday by scoring 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting and added three rebounds and two assists. Thompson dropped four three-pointers during the game to help lead the 76ers to a 92-71 win.

– Cody Taylor

Duds:

F Aaron Gordon – Orlando Magic

4 points (0-3 FG), 0 rebounds and two fouls

The Orlando Magic shocked many people when they selected Aaron Gordon at No. 4 during the 2014 NBA Draft. Gordon is known for his defense and knows his offensive game will have to improve. On Tuesday afternoon, Gordon showed he will have to drastically improve in both areas in the next few months. The young 18-year-old forward went 0-for-3 from the field and picked up four points after being fouled twice. His defensive game wasn’t much better, he didn’t grab any rebounds and he didn’t record any steals or blocks in the 25 minutes that he played. Gordon will have a couple more games this week to get adjusted to the team and new style of play.

G Peyton Siva – Detroit Pistons

2 points (0-3 FG), two assists and one rebound

Pistons point guard Peyton Siva struggled on Tuesday against the Miami HEAT. In the 12 minutes that he played, Siva went 0-for-3, scored two points, had only two assists, picked up two fouls and had one turnover. Siva played well in the first two games, scoring 16 points against Houston and 12 points against Memphis. Siva will have the opportunity to play again on Wednesday night against Boston Celtics.

F Shabazz Napier  – Miami Heat

7 points (3-11 FG), two assists and three turnovers

Shabazz Napier had a rough start to Summer League when he shot 20 percent from the field and had eight turnovers in his first game. Things improved for the young guard on Sunday when he scored 17 points and had seven assists. After a day off, Napier seemed to revert to his Saturday form. On Tuesday afternoon, Napier shot 27 percent from the field and missed all five of his shots from downtown. On the bright side, he did limit his turnovers to only three but he only had three assists.

– Mary Stevens