I look at the summer league as like a college intermural league with good college sophomores and juniors. Most of these guys are just 19 and 20 year old kids who haven't a clue about probasketball. That's not to say that future all stars aren't out there, but the key word here is FUTURE. It's a real problem for the NBA when most of their efforts are to prepare young player so just when they are reaching their potential, they are ready for max contracts.
That being said, I watched most of the game and was VERY impressed with Tatum. Clearly he is much further along than Brown was at this point of his career. The most underrated stat for Tatum was that he had 5 steals in this game. Great defense is hard to find in this league. Its nice to know that Tatum has some potential in this area.
Now on to Brown. Brown was the best player on the court in that game. He should be, with a year in the league under his belt. He dominated in this game, and while 29 points was impressing I was more impressed with his 12 rebounds. What this tells me is that Brown has improved as expected when they drafted him. How much will have to wait until he plays real games, but he could challenge Jai Crowder for minutes this season.
Now on to Fultz - NOT as impressive as Philly fans might have hoped. The one assist was a bad look for a point guard. Clearly he has skills. They were apparent as you watched. But like most 19 year olds, he's not ready to make an impact at this level. If Philly fans expect an instant improvement at the PG position they are going to be disappointed. That being said, the kid could be an all star in 3 years.
That's what wrong with the NBA draft system, when you draft 19 year olds you really don't have a clue about what you have, only indications. Now when you draft in the top 5 you know you are more than likely to EVENTUALLY get a solid NBA pro. But ideally when draft in the top 5, you are looking for more than merely a starter, you are looking for a superstar at best and an all star at worst. And there is no way to tell when you get them at this age.
A couple of other points:
1. For the Celts, so far so good, but I'd keep my expectations under control. The summer league is the NBA equivalent of OTA's.....without the Vets.
2. That being said, I liked what I saw from Brown and Tatum to think that this team will be a more talented and skilled one than last year's team....even without Gordon Haywood. Now whether that talent will translate into more wins won't be answered until January, just like the Pats have shown us over the years, mere talent doesn't always translate into great teams. (see 2009)
3. The Western Conference is going to get a LOT of hype this pre season, and perhaps rightfully so. But I wonder how the record is going to go when they actually start to play. The NFC gets all the hype in the NFL, while the AFC usually has a better interconference record year to year. Just something to watch.
4. Zizic didn't look like he's ready to take Ollynyk's job, but clearly he wasn't near game shape, as a lot of players admited, including Tatum.
5. I couldn't have been more pleased after I watched Tatum's first post game interview. He was smart, articulate ,and self aware. Right away he admited that this was a much faster game at this level. He admited he wasn't in great shape, and that he was reealy nervous. He knows he has a lot to improve on in the coming days. That's a HUGE step for a young player.\
6. I think a lot of mediots will make comparisons between how Fultz is doing compared to Tatum. I think the real comparison should be with Jackson, because HE was who he was competing with in Danny's mind for the #3 pick.
