It’s time for NBA Summer League, so which Wildcats will be playing on what team in which league?
Former Arizona Wildcats, Brandon Ashley (Dallas Mavericks), Kaleb Tarczewski (Philadelphia 76ers), Gabe York (Charlotte Hornets), Kobi Simmons (Memphis), Lauri Markkanen (Chicago Bulls), Kadeem Allen (Boston Celtics), Grant Jerrett (Cleveland Cavaliers), and Nick Johnson (Trailblazers) will be on a team and play in NBA Summer League.
Gabe York will play with the Charlotte Hornets in the 2017 Orlando Mountain Dew Pro Summer League beginning July 1. The Orlando Pro Summer League will air on NBA TV so you will be able to watch York play hopefully in all of the games on the Charlotte Hornets schedule.
What’s even more exciting to the Lakers fan is that ‘shoot the lights out’ Gabe York will be playing for former Arizona Wildcat and NBA Summer League Lakers coach Jud Buechler and Miles Simon. York will be playing with fellow former Pac-12 players Travis Wear (UCLA), Lonzo Ball (UCLA/Lakers), and Kyle Kuzma (Utah/Lakers).
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- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson’s FIBA World Cup performance is reminiscent of Kobe Bryant’s
- Rawle Alkins a star in the Drew League this summer
- Former Wildcat Scooby Wright wins Second USFL Title
- The Edmonton Elks have re-signed former Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate
The Lakers will play in the Vegas Summer League. For the Las Vegas Summer League, the action begins on Friday night, July 7, 2017. Each team plays in three games that weekend, and five games at a minimum. The teams are seeded in a tournament which begins on July 12th and closes on Monday, July 17 with the Championship Game. Each team will play a minimum of five games.
Grant Jarrett will play with the Cleveland Cavaliers in Vegas. Fans have frequently mentioned how they don’t think he should have left school so early. I have to admit I wondered who told him to leave, but his minutes dwindled under Miller, so maybe it was a good time.
Anyway, the 6-foot-10 power forward from SoCal was drafted in the second round of the 2013 NBA Draft at No. 40 by Portland. Since then he has played on NBA teams as well as their D-League affiliates and spent last season playing in the Chinese Basketball Association for the Beijing Ducks. Will be fun to see how his game has developed overseas.
Kaleb Tarzcewski had a great run in Summer League last season but ended up playing in the D-League for the OKC Blue. Isaiah Fox, Assistant Coach for the South Bay Lakers and former Wildcat, told me he killed when he came to play in Los Angeles. Who doesn’t love them some Zeus? Recently we saw Zeus and Nick Johnson working out in and around McKale in the DIrty T.
Tarczewski will play for T.J. McConnell’s Sixers this summer, would have loved to have seen the two play together, but T.J. Is now a veteran, it’s been a couple of years.
Nick Johnson’s spot on the Portland Trailblazers was just announced.
Johnson just came back from playing for Bayern Munich of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) after playing for a season on the Spurs D-League affiliate.
Kobi Simmons just signed a contract with the Memphis Grizzlies, it was announced by GM Chris Wallace on Saturday, July 1st. Simmons went undrafted but struck a deal with the Grizzlies the day after the draft. Now Kobi has his chance to shine and rises the occasion, which is totally possible and we look forward to watching it happen.
https://twitter.com/jordankobi/status/881261251510370305
Brandon Ashley, now 22, is looking to wow the Dallas Mavericks. Ashley will play with the Mavericks for the third straight year. You can catch Ashley in the Orlando Summer League. Ashley was an NBA D-League All-Star (2016) playing for the Texas Legends. Ashley just finished playing for Alba Berlin (Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) Germany).
Finally our two Wildcats NBA Draftees, Kadeem Allen, and Lauri Markkanen. Lauri chose to wear the number 24 for the Chicago Bulls because basically all his other choices were taken. The Finnish Mamba maybe (a la Kobe Bryan’s number). SC Featured produced this gem of a biofilm on our Finnisher:
Kadeem Allen will be a Boston Celtic and play in the Utah summer league with Jayson Tatum and others. Being one of the older players drafted just makes him that much more hungry and focused on proving himself. DraftExpress recently put together an analysis on why Kadeem is a good fit:
Meanwhile, Kyle Fogg is killing it overseas and just signed a contract Guangzhou Long-Lions for two million dollars per year till 2019. And Terence Ferguson was drafted by Paul George’s new team, the Oklahoma City Thunder, he’s playing in Orlando this weekend.
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Orlando Summer League (Mavericks, Hornets), is under way and you can catch it on NBATV from July 1-5th. Then Starting July 3-6, the Utah Summer League will include the Sixers and Celtics. And finally, on July 7th, Vegas Summer League begins with the Lakers, Celtics, Trailblazers, Cavaliers, Bulls, and Mavericks.