Lakers Fall to the Nuggets in Last Summer League Game
The final NBA Summer League game for the Lakers has come to a close. Unfortunately, they were unable to pull out a win in their final game. The Nuggets were in control the whole gam, led by Curtis Jones from the Nuggets. Jones scored the most points in all of the Summer League games he's played against the Lakers. He scored 22 points with five rebounds and eight assists. The Nuggets just signed sharpshooter Tim Hardaway Jr. this offseason. Look for them to sign Jones to a two-way contract and join that second unit next season. Jones was shooting lights out during the Summer League, averaging 15 points per game, shooting 55% from the field and 47% from three. Also, let's not overlook his 19 assists combined during this Summer League stretch. The Lakers were very short-handed tonight, missing the likes of Dalton Knecht and Darius Bazley due to injury, as well as Bronny James, who sat out the game.
The Lakers were led by Cole Swider, of course, who has proven this Summer League why we should see him more come this fall. Swider, along with RJ Davis, led all scorers with 17 points, scoring 12 of those in the first quarter alone. Both Sir’Jabari Rice and Julian Reese gave the Lakers bench a boost, scoring a combined eight points. Of course, it wasn’t enough as the Nuggets went on to win 106-84, the final score. There was one more surprising revelation in this game for the Lakers.
RJ Davis played almost 26 minutes coming off the bench, the most minutes he has played during Summer League play. Davis made six out of 11 field-goal attempts and was three out of five from beyond the arc. It will be interesting to see which young talent from that roster gets picked up to join the main roster. Versatility is immense in today's game, and with the Lakers needing a big man, Cole Swider is an obvious choice. Don’t be surprised, however, to see someone like DJ Steward or even Daruus Bazley signed as well. Those guys have done their part to be called up to the main roster.
