[Singer] There’s a real chance Christian Braun plays in Summer League this year. Think some of Denver’s brass wants to see him hunt for his shot and dominate in a way he wasn’t asked to during the regular season last year.
There's a real chance Christian Braun plays in Summer League this year. Think some of Denver's brass wants to see him hunt for his shot and dominate in a way he wasn't asked to during the regular season last year.
— Mike Singer (@msinger) June 26, 2023
by vonheisenberg
13 Comments
Who’s brass
Cool.
W
o/u 1.5 games played?
Braun is a tremendous athlete but if he wants to remain in the league for a while, he’ll need to work on his ball handling as well as creating his own shost. Two things that summer league ball would be good for.
One side to this is that he 100% proved his spot on the team. I hate to send players out in the summer league like that, it feels disrespectful.
On the other hand, he does need to work on some skills that won’t be possible in the season. Summer league can be a place where he expands his bag and work on; handles, passing and shooting.
That’s awesome, because it shows they think he can be more than a 3 & D wing.
I think he can have a trajectory like Jaylen Brown. He’s a better shooter than Jaylen was early on (which admittedly isn’t saying much), similarly athletic, and needs to develop his handle and playmaking.
Their idea is similar to european players go to international tournaments, being their star player making 20+ points per game and leading a team instead of being a role player in an NBA squad i guess.
Also Braun played 15 minutes per game and just travelling with the team all season long.
He could need some more playtime on the court.
Good idea but don’t wanna over work him and cause injuries
Rotational piece with huge moments in the NBA Finals going to the summer league. I hope he’s ego can handle that. He’s young and super successful, hopefully he’s mature enough to navigate those feelings. I wouldn’t be.
I’ll keep a close eye
Here’s how I’m reading into this:
This is basically preparing Braun for a future role on this team. In a scenario that Bruce does not re-sign, or something happens where he is inured, Malone will want Braun to step up and take his role. That means being a great ball handler and playmaker, still hustling and providing great defense, and as Singer said, create his own shot and take over.
Basically, kind of promoting him to a 6th man role and being the guy to run our bench. I like the move overall. I wouldn’t take this in a bad way. Basically prepare you for what your role could be as early as next season.
By that logic, MPJ should also attend. Braun was more impactful than MPJ in that last series.