Atlanta hawks vs Boston Celtics | Full Game | Jul 20, 2025 | NBA 2K26 Summer League Today
G-League contract, a full contract, international ball, who’s got that that fortitude inside him, George, I think is so important if you’re if you’re a front office personnel to watch guys today. All right. And some guys who are not playing today, but certainly have made an impression here. We’ll start with Atlanta Kobe Buffin, a former draft pick for them. This is a young man who can put some good film on paper. Yeah, no doubt. I mean, he was the number 15 pick in the 2023 draft. He was really good this week. like a sick four guard out of Michigan that you know he got to the free throw line like seven times a game. He was 27 out of 28. He downhill driver ran the club very confident put up some big numbers. A 29point game against the Heat, 25 against the Rocket. He played really well and in the name of Kobe Buffkin really accelerated over the past seven or eight days. Let’s talk now about the first round pick this year for the Atlanta Hawks. And let’s check in with Alyssa. Yeah, guys, another guy who won’t be playing today, but has been a bright spot for the Hawks throughout summer league. Asa Newell. He averaged over 13 points and eight rebounds in his summer league debut, shooting 42% from the three-point line. And for Asa, he’s living out a childhood dream. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Idolized the Hawks, would go to games wearing a Kyle Corver jersey, then goes on to the University of Georgia where he has a great career in the SEC. Now, here he is wearing the hometown jersey, a dream come true. Just a reminder as these guys continue to chase these dreams, make these rosters, guys like Asa have reached part of their dreams already by just being here. No doubt about it, Alyssa. Thank you. Let’s talk about Boston, a former second round pick and Jordan Walsh not playing today. Came in here trying to shoot, did a nice job. Yeah, second round pick out of Arkansas. And that’s kind of been the knock against Walsh and throughout his career so far. Can he make jump shots enough to stay on an NBA floor? We know he’s always been an athlete, can drive the ball. He’s got a tough kid, a competitive motor. But he knocked down 39% of his threes this week, which is really good news for Boston and Jordan because there’s a lot of minutes now available for a restructured Boston Celtics team. He’s got great size at 67. I think it’s an important year coming up for Jordan Walsh for his NBA career. And a great uh a great hat by the way this afternoon of the day. Let’s take a look at the starting lineups here for Boston. Norris Brown, Williams Gonzalez, and Shoga for Atlanta, Johnson White, Joseph Flaggler, and Murray Jr. Our head coaches, Matt Reynolds for Boston, Brian Bailey for Atlanta. Our officials today, Cameron Gelinus, Brian Johnson, and Ashley Burch. And we’re ready to tip here. First of three in this building today. We’ve got the championship game, of course, at 10 Eastern, 7 Pacific on ESPN. Charlotte and Sacramento. Both these teams, as we mentioned, Jimmy, played really well here, and it’s unfortunate that it was very topheavy here at summer league this year. It was. Yeah. Right off the bat, you see the good read defensively knowing that Amari Williams, big kid out of Kentucky, is so good with the zoom action, the back door cuts. Atlanta right on top of it defensively, the first possession. Murray Jr. gets around the screen, lobs it up, but Williams with the deflection. It’ll remain Atlanta ball. 12 seconds on the shot clock. You know this about Williams. He’s NBA size. He’s all of seven foot with a 74 75 wingspan. Built to protect that rim. Long arms. Reacts to the basketball well. Had a heck of a season for Mark Pope at Kentucky. Yeah. Second in rebounding in the SEC last year. Flaggler weaving in traffic there and gets swatted from behind by Gonzalez. The first round pick for the Celtics. Good job by Gonzalez to not give up on the play. Shog on the drive. The kick. One more to Gonzalez. Wide open from the corner. In and out. That one bounces into Norris’s hand. Norris can shoot it and he lets one rip. In and out again. This time rebounded by Atlanta. Murray thought about it. Gets it back. Now surveying. Flaggler on the drive. Finds White. Jack launches one up. No good off of Williams. Nope. He’s able to save it. Yeah, good challenge of the shot by the Celtics. The ability to stay in front of the ball. We talked about it yesterday. So important at this level. Williams looking to the corner. Brown pump fakes, drives baseline and gets the slam. Such a quick athlete out of that corner is Brown. A little bit of a foot fake and in one bounce covers about 15 feet in the hard finish. One of the most efficient Celtics here at summer league this year. Kendall Brown. Corner. Jack White again. and doesn’t get the shooters roll. Norris steps into a three-pointer. Misses there. Well, he’s had two good looks though, huh? Oh, there’s no doubt. For a guy his size, it comes off clean. You think it’s going in and he stepped out of bounds. So, Atlanta with a turnover there by Flaggler. That crowded corner for shooters is normally where they get tripped up. They’ll take that little back step into their jump shot. got flagged that time. Just lost control, lost his foot discipline handling that ball and the turnover results. Norris again a good look from three. This time he buries it. Okay, so what I like about Norris, he misses his first two. On the third one, there’s no hesitation. He shot the third one just like he made the first two. Some signs of mental toughness by Norris as a shooter. Murray. Nice bounce pass, but too low. Turns it over there. Corner now. Norris lets it rip one more time. Can’t get that one to fall. 25% in the game so far, but he’s shooting it like he’s 50%, right? Oh, definitely. No question. Johnson lines one up. Too strong. Rebound. Brown. Atlanta just not getting a lot of good looks early. The offense is stagnant. One pass in the jack. Push shot for Brown is good. Seven nothing Celtics. George, it doesn’t matter what level of basketball we’re talking about. If you can’t stop the basketball up top, you got no uh you’ve got no business hanging in games and Atlanta defensively just way too easy to start this one. Murray Jr. a late contest, but he buries it. Good job by Atlanta finally to get that second and third pass. That wasn’t the extra pass. That was the right pass. Extra passes result in turnovers. Right passes resulting good looks. Gonzalez with the spin. Kicks it to the corner to Brown. Celtics reset. 10 seconds on the shot clock. Shogga loses it now in the corner to Brown. Williams up top. Four seconds. He launches the grenade. Williams misses on the front end. Well, those have two shots though by Williams. He caught with a short clock. Oh, what a move there by Murray. Float game. No, doesn’t pounce in. Williams with the rebound. Just the presence of Amari Williams made what looks like an automatic two a difficult shot. Spin move by Gonzalez. Air ball, but he gets fouled. We’ve called Gonzalez’s names a couple of times now. And this is a kid that’s only 19 years old. First round pick by Boston and just finished up his pro career in Spain maybe two or three weeks ago. What jumps out about this guy on film, even in international ball, he’s got a motor and plays hard. Hasn’t always shot the ball great. 25% from three in Spain, but 37% so far in Vegas. This guy’s got a lot a lot of upside. Well, Jimmy, you know, he plays on Real Madrid and plays with a bunch of men. Yeah. So, he doesn’t get a lot of playing time with the big with the big club, the senior club, but when you look at his FIA numbers, you know, under 19, things of that nature. When he’s playing with guys his age, he’s phenomenal at that level. Great size. He’s all up 66. And again, but the fact that he’s got a high motor and he plays his tail off is what Boston saw in this kid as much as anything. And and Boston over the years, they have found guys like that that just absolutely outwork you. I think Gonzalez will be another one of those. Gonzalez also a 610 wingspan. That one off the window for Atlanta. It’s another tough shot though by Atlanta, although it goes down. Yeah, that shot diet is not great. Turnover here for Boston. Stevens comes up with it. Just not there. That pass might be there in Spain. It’s not there at this level, but Gonzalez will learn the speed of the game a little different level. Stevens connects on the three-pointer and we got a tie ball game. Big guys that can shoot are so valuable in the G- League or the real league. That middle ball screen pick and pop threat for a big of great value. Stevens just did it well. Kendall Brown for three way off. Brown working on that shot. We know he can play defense. He’s a great athlete. Flaggler misses long there, but they want him to shoot that. They want to encourage him because he’s got the D part. He needs to get the three part down. In and out for Gonzalez. Norris right place, right time. He’s blocked there. Atlanta on the run. Murray sizing up Scholga. Drives into the paint. A dish to Stevens. Stevens with the easy finish. A really good find though by Murray. really created something out of nothing because he took the ball into the crowded part of the defense, but a late good find. Appreciate Stevens having his hands ready on a very sharp pass from about 8 ft away. 70 run for Atlanta ends right there as Norris hits another three-pointer, his second of the game. And again, you’re looking at a guy that’s all up 68 with long arms. You forget how big and how much size there is in NBA games, even at the summer league. Flaggler on the fadeaway, no good. And Williams gets fouled by Stevens. So we’ll step aside. One-point game for the Celtics early on here in Vegas. NBA 2K26 Emily [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Hey. [Music] for us on ESPNU. Memphis and the Clippers. And tonight on ESPN, the Summer League Championship game, Sacramento and Charlotte, 10 Eastern, 7 Pacific. Playing for a ring, right? No doubt. How many How many diamonds? How many carrots in that thing? 2.75. That’s good. That’s more than I’ve got in mind. Me, too. Williams on the drive. Pump fake. Left hand is good. That’s really good. put out of a timeout to get Williams as a sevenfooter. He’s very comfortable, very confident, and very strong driving left with force. Finished through contact. I just think there’s a lot of upside about 77 in white. Isaiah Wong with some good defense there. And some more good defense by Boston. Aiden Gray was just checked in. Wong thought about it. Gets the hand off from Williams. Gets the screen now. [Music] Williams to the corner. Bridges for three with 5 seconds on the shot clock and nails that one. Yeah, 7 foot point guard up top though in Williams. The ability to see beyond the obvious pass finding that weak side corner bomb. 80 run for the Celtics. Lead by six. Air ball for Atlanta. You know, Williams is on a Boston team now that needs help in that front line with what they’ve lost with Porzingis and Cornell. So, the the minutes are there for Williams this year as a sevenfooter. We’ve already seen his offensive skill set, his ability to move the ball, pass the ball, see the floor. Really good things to work with. Scott with a nice rebound. Wong puts it on the deck, gets hammered, and he’ll go to the free throw line. [Music] So, we’ll step aside here for the moment. Now, remember the Amari Williams is 7 feet tall, but he throws a strike from about 25 ft away to that backside bomb three. Well done. Love slots? The Drag Kings Casino’s got you covered. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] But it really is for the coaches, too. Matt Reynolds, Celtics summer league head coach, started in college as the team manager of Syracuse men’s basketball. He then had a couple of stints at the high school level, then went on to UNC Asheville and Eastern Michigan. In October of 2013, Boston was looking for a film room intern. So Matt’s sister was friends with Brian Adams who had recently worked for the Celtics. He’s currently an assistant at Alabama with Nate Oats. Adams put in a good word. Reynolds got the job. And now look, he’s the head coach of the Celtics during summer league. He said every Thanksgiving they cheers to Brian Adams. How about that? Yeah, I would too if I were him. You know, Jimmy, that film room has brought a number of good head coaches. I know Matt’s trying to work his way there, but I mean, no better example in the history of the NBA than Eric Spolstra, you know, learning from Pat Riley being his film guy. Uh he used to call it working in the dungeon back then in Miami in the ’90s. That’s where work gets done in those dark rooms inside those facilities. But, you know, it’s such a great opportunity not only for players trying to stand out and figure out how they fit in this league, but for those young assistant coaches to get, you know, four or five games as a as a head coach experience and this the communication that changes differently from an assistant to a head coach voice in huddles, the preparation, all the things that the information that’s flying at a head coach even in a summer league game. Really good opportunity for Matt Reynolds. And I tell you what, he’s under two of the best guys in the business. And Brad Stevens, the general manager, and Joe Missoula, there’s not two better guys to learn from uh for Coach Reynolds. Alyssa. Yeah, Jimmy, you talk about the difference in energy. It’s something that Jordan Walsh talked about this week. He said normally he’s not a guy who’s super vocal, yells a lot, but you can see how happy he is, how excited he is. He said he’s jumping around screaming. I’ve never heard him scream before. And just sitting here for a few minutes, that was comparable. Nice dunk there by Smith. There’s some energy right there by Smith. That might get Coach Reynolds screaming a little bit because there was no resistance at all in that initial push. Isaiah Wong kicks it out. Three ball no good. Ball batted around. Celtics come up with it. Scott’s got it on one knee. Tries to get it to Wong. Can’t handle it. Ball headed the other direction. Flaggler, he throws a wild pass and that’s intercepted going the other way. Gray puts on the brakes. George, you’re looking at guys right now that they’re trying to find a way to stand out whether it’s their first year or second year and you got to get folks attention. Like I I go back to what TJ McConnell did early in his career. He made the decision to pick up 94 ft, get in better condition than anybody else in the league. And as a result, he’s made himself into a 10-year pro by just simply playing to exhaustion. And I think that’s what all these guys in Vegas, they’re trying to find something that separates them from other people. And TJ McConnell’s a great example of it. You got to excel at something. You do. Flaggler on the step back gets that one to fall. It’s interesting you said that. I used to be an NBA scout for Seattle back when they had a franchise. I worked for a game named a guy named Gary Wartman. He’s told me two things. Find me a guy that can do something at the NBA level every single night. Find me that one NBA skill. And secondly, only bring me guys that get it. And what he meant by that was guys that know all the intangibles. They’re going to be great locker room guys. They understand carving out roles in the NBA, but you’ve got to find something that you can do every single night in this league if you’re going to stick. Absolutely. They can teach you some of the other stuff, but if you have one elite skill, they can work with that. Yeah. So, 10 seconds separation, game clock, shot clock, nine-point ball game. Celtics leading. Zack Hicks hit that last three. He’s on defense there, but McVey on the curl and the three ball is flying now and guys are connecting. McVey drops one there. I’m a big fan of McVey. This is a guy that’s 29 years old, still out here battling and very, very good in that ball screen pop to a three shot by 32 in red. Isaiah Wong gets the step. Can’t get the roll there. So we have a foul though. So Wong will go [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] The moment Isaiah Wong If he does get fouled and go to the free throw line and everything works itself out the way we expected. Let’s listen in here first. Replay is confirmed that the foul occurred with 1.3 on the game clock. Isaiah Wong will shoot two shots with 1.3. So Wong will go to the free throw line. As I mentioned, Wong led the University of Miami, Jim Larenga and that squad to their first Elite 8 and Final Four in back-to-back seasons. Had a heck of a career. here. I mean, he’s the 2023 ACC player of the year and a second round pick by the Pacers. Now, he finds himself right now with bouncing around with some two-way deals with both Charlotte and the Pacers. But Isaiah Wong is wired to score and he’s got some maturity about him. Even in that last sequence, understanding game clock winding down, you don’t settle for a tough one. You drive that ball and drag the officials into the play. Very well done by Isaiah Wong. Isaiah Wong misses the front end. High basketball IQ obviously when you’re that kind of player at that level in that conference in the ACC leading that team to where they’ve been to again they’d never been there before him. Yeah. Are are you athletic enough below the shoulders to stick in this league and are you smart enough above the shoulder? The heave that doesn’t count here at summer league. No heaves under three seconds but we got a seven-point lead for the Celtics after one. Heat. Hey, Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] It’s been amazing. You know, I got a great group of guys who just trying to finish out strong and be able to go five and0. When you think about what you’ve put on tape over the last 10 days, how would you describe that? Uh, just a guy that, you know, can plug and play anywhere. Um, guy that can guard and just, you know, make shots. Thanks, Adam. Thank you. All right, Alyssa. Thank you. Adam Flaggler, 2021 national champion with Baylor, Jimmy. Well, he went undrafted in 2023, but he’s a 41% three-point guy in his three years at Baylor, and there’s always value and always space for someone on a roster that can shoot it that well. Kendall Brown on the drive, left hand bounces in. He is as good of athlete in his freshman class in college ball that we had. He’s always been able to do that stuff right there at 68 69. Drive that thing with force. Blocked from behind there. Flaggler gets blocked by Brown. Brown savvy with his hands. Yeah, Brown just glides, man. He’s easy athlete, right, to watch. So, 14 seconds on the shot clock. Celtics with a nine-point lead. Now, George, it’s a it’s a league, as you know, that’s you’re constantly solving problems in the NBA, and there’s value to guys that can solve problems when they happen during the season, injuries or lack of rebounding, and another way to just separate yourself in the eyes of guys making decisions about you. Good follow through by Wong. Doesn’t drop. Joseph clears the rebound. Now Smith. Joseph finds Johnson on the curl. Offensive foul. That one on Joseph. George, that foul doesn’t get called unless Gonzalez is fighting his tail off defensively. He’s trying to blow up that ball screen. If he’s a lazy defender, this foul doesn’t get called. But because Gonzalez is competing his tail end off, he’s fighting through, trying to blow things up and gets the whistle in his favor. I I see a lot of good things why the Celtics took this kid. Yeah, incredible upside. And again, I think there’s something to be said even though again he doesn’t have a ton of numbers in the varsity club for Real Madrid. The fact he’s practicing with grown men who a number of them which played in the NBA. Hicks hits his third three-pointer for the Celtics. I I think there’s something to be said about that even as a young man having played with those grown men for so many years. He looks like a pro. when I’m not saying that’s why you keep a guy or why he becomes a 10-year veteran, but Gonzalez’s body already looks like a pro. Strong shoulders, strong legs, moves with confidence, and again, he’s coming off of a long season, so to to to flip it around and embrace the NBA and the the different nuances of it, I’m impressed with this kid. And the Celtics are in a bit of a a rebuilding, reloading process, however you want to describe it, after the Tatum interview. Hicks, misses everything there, but a save by Brown. No, they’ll say he stepped out. So, they’re in a bit of a reset, let’s call it, at the moment with the Tatum injury. They’ve traded Porzingis. They’ve traded Drew Holiday. They kept Derek White and Jaylen Brown for now. Well, there’s going to be shots available with Tatum being out. There’s Brown being the athlete that he is again. But think about this, Jason Tatum, 28 field goal attempts per every 100 possessions that he was on the floor. That’s fifth in the NBA. So, the Celtics are going to have a lot of offensive opportunities for guys to start next year. Yeah, you mentioned Amari Williams. There’s also Charles Bassie who’s played in the NBA for the Spurs uh a number of games over his career, nearly about 50, and that’s why they’ve shut him down. He’s certainly a guy, as Wong connects on the three-pointer. Bassie is a guy already with NBA experience that they feel like they could probably plug and play fairly easily. out. It’s another really good scoring drive by Kendall Brown. He didn’t score, but he facilitated it, driving that ball with passion and finding that weak side 45 slot and then the the good reversal by Gonzalez. Boston really moving the ball well, but it’s starting with different guys ability to get inside the defense and make plays. Gonzalez lets it rip. Too strong. Rebound Johnson. A little a little mechanical on his release. I can see why he’s 25% in his pro career so far. Hicks comes up with the rebound there, but good ball handler for his size. Wong to the corner. Brown pump fake now trying to back his man down. Gets in there off the glass. Might have gotten away with a walk again. Boston getting inside the defense into the lane area. The second lane touch by Boston results in Kendall Brown at the rim. Sorry, go ahead. Well, I’m just saying defensively in this league, if you can square your guy up and playing him chest to chest, you can get away with a lot of contact. You give up angles and like driving angles, that’s on you. And that’s what Atlanta’s doing right now. [Music] [Music] Hey. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] who have still won a championship. But that thing looks a little different for sure. Well, it does, especially on the far right now. Luca Garza steps in probably as a projected starter with Kada and Williams. Xavier Tilman could get some run there, but this is a Celtics organization that’s in a in a in a remake, but they know what they’re doing. You look at Sam Cassell and Stevens, Missou, those guys have been ball around ball a long time. And Celtics were so good last year, George, shooting that three-point shot. They led the NBA making almost 18 threes a game. They played one of the slower paces, but they value shooting. They value taking care of the ball and they value defense. They were the second best defense in the league last year, pulling opponents to 45% from the field. Yeah, Joe Missoula certainly stresses that he loves a physical game. You know, Joe is uh I one of my favorite characters as a coach in the NBA. Always has something interesting to say. Push shot no good there for Johnson. It’ll be Celtics basketball. Joe, a big MMA guy, big soccer guy. Okay. Yeah. Well, listen, he trains him. He hurt he hurt the year they won the championship, he had to have surgery in his knee from his MMA train. So, it was funny. I remember after they won the championship, um last year or two years now, uh we had them their I believe their opening week. It was a rematch between them and Indie from the conference finals. And I asked Joe, so Joe, what is it like to be the hunted as opposed to the hunter now? And he looked at me straight in the face. He goes, “It’s an absurd notion.” He goes, he goes, “We’re the Boston Celtics, number one. We’re always going to be hunted. But number two,” he goes, “It’s like, yeah, beautiful finish, too.” He goes, “It’s it’s like the king of the jungle, right? The lion. The lion’s the king of the jungle, but doesn’t mean if he’s not if he’s caught napping, the hippo can’t get him.” And I said, “Joe, can I use that on the air?” He’s like, “Absolutely.” You just did again. He’s got a great beautiful queue on life. Joe Mazou, I love listening to him talk about a lot of things, but they will be the hunter again this year. Projected to only win about 43 games. This is what I love about Amari Williams, 77 and white. He’s a sevenfooter that’s playing point guard up top. He can run that zoom action where he dribbles at the side and reads the defense and a really good circle cut, curl cut that time to finish it off. But Boston’s moving the ball well, but it has been a lot of Kendall Brown driving the baseline at 68 and Amari Williams up top as a sevenfooter playing the point guard spot. Yeah, the Celtics projected to be about 18 losses worse than they were a year ago. They were 61 and 21, second in the East, but not where they’re being projected right now. Yeah. You know, look, to their credit, they realized with Tatum’s injury, that window’s closed. They got to start a new one. No doubt. Bridges fires for three. No good. Williams already with four assists, was looking for his fifth there. Three ball on the way is good. A sharp shooter right there. And Johnson connects. Well, Busting got mismatch in the transition defense right off the bat. Williams would cut outside with the shooter. Oh, using the body of Mari Williams. One of the biggest parts of transition defense, George, is does your fiveman run with the opposing fiveman? If so, then you can match up one through four. But if that fiveman gets mismatched in transition, bad things happen. And that’s what happened to the Celtics on their last transition. So Kobe Johnson misses. Williams goes up top. Snagged there by Kobe Johnson. Headed the other way. It just wasn’t there. As good of an athlete that Kobe Johnson is, that ball’s got to be higher. Javon Johnson misses the three. The put back no good. Twice there. They had a shot at it and couldn’t connect. So Jack White misses there two times. Gray trying to shake Flaggler. Norris checks back in. He hit two threes earlier. 4 seconds on the shot clock. Shot is up. No good. Rebound flag. Oh, excuse me. Murray. Murray from the free throw line extended. Gets that one to fall. Got to be able to make those. And that drop coverage. You come off of the guard and that defensive fiveman is sitting back in that lane. You have got to be able to stick those shots at the nail. Really well done by Murray on that one. 11-point ball game. Norris misses on that one. Hits the deck but recovers. Von Johnson nifty moves to get through the paint. Kobe Johnson looking for that DHO action. Doesn’t get it. They get it to Javon to the corner now. Murray short rebound. Patted away. Williams comes up with it. He leads the break. They got numbers to Celtics. And that slows down, but Bridges will step into a three. No good. Rebound. Scott goes up high to get it. Gray now takes an opportunity to pass it one more time to Bridges. That one short. Norris grabs it and a foul on the floor by Kobe Johnson. Yeah, Boston just outworking Atlanta on that possession. Those 50/50 balls, they got 100% of them. That’s kind of the Celtics mode. outworks you Consumer Reports ranks car brands [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] On Tuesday night, we’ll have an ESPN double header for you. The Fever will be in New York to take on the Liberty at 8 Eastern. Then the Aces host the dream. Our coverage begins with NBA Countdown at 7:30 Eastern. George Sado, Jimmy Dykes, Alyssa Lang with you here in Las Vegas. Celtics and Hawks in the consolation bracket here. Boston leading by 11 at the moment. But you can see why these two teams had such a successful run here, Jimmy. Well, quick athletes all over the floor backed up with size. That’s always a great combination. Shot making’s been at a pretty good level. Well, it’s interesting watching shooters shoot in this league. Seth Curry this year from Charlotte led it at 45% from threes. Zack Lavine, Tarian Prince, Ty Jerome, all those guys were 44% or higher. My point is all four of those guys shoot the ball a little bit different, but they build their shot from the ground up. They have a repeatable, consistent release of the basketball and they can really flick it. And the same thing holds true here. I mean, Gonzalez to me, he builds his shot well from the ground, but that consistency and how he releases it is where he needs improvement. Ball batted around. Celtics get a reload here by Gonzalez. And this time he trains it. Yeah, he drops it just a little bit on the catch, which I think he’s going to have to get that habit out of himself because it’s got to get off quicker in this league. If not, you can only take open threes. But that drop and a little bit of a of a mechanical release has to be smoothed out. Jack White goes up strong with the left hand. Remember Jack White from Duke, right? Got this put on the floor. Coach Kwood and just would go in and out work people and just beat you up. Norris with the turnaround. No good. Another rebound by Scott. He’s been everywhere. Williams in traffic. That one rolls off, but he gets fouled. Let’s take a look at Hugo Gonzalez one more time. Well, watch when he catches this ball. I’m pretty sure he’s going to have a little bit of a drop to it. Goes down. Yeah, he got he got that thing almost to the top of his knees and that’s not what you want. That’s a habit that has to be broken. I mean, if not, you’re only going to be able to take wide open threes in the NBA, and those are hard to come by. That ball’s got to be caught in that shot pocket. From there, boom, straight up and in. The best shooters, George, when you put a stopwatch on them. Used to do that as a scout. from the time they get it to the time it’s out of their paw somewhere between a half a second maybe 7.8 and that’s right now not where he’s at. It’s interesting when you talk to coaches here collectively and you ask them hey what is the thing you’re kind of reminding some of these guys who shoot the basketball pretty well. scorers and they all to a man say, “Hey, don’t pass up what you think is not an open shot.” Cuz in the NBA, the shot you’re passing up is an open shot. You know, you got to make sure you know what an open shot is at this level. Beautiful feed and finish there by the Hawks. I love that violent cut by Murray, first of all, to get himself open. And then when he attacked that rim, he knew the entire time he was waiting on that big to fill from behind. Murray has made some good plays for Atlanta. now comes up with a steal. Williams turns it over. Atlanta, they had White in the corner earlier. Now he gets it on the drive. Baseline, left hand, no good. Rebound, Joseph. McVey steps back and fires and connects. I’m a big fan of Jack McVey. He’s 29 years old out here auditioning right now in the NBA Summer League. He led the Tasmanian Jack Jumpers to the NBL Australian title in 2024. My favorite thing about it. You got a Jack jumper jersey on you? I I don’t I don’t. But it sounds like one I’d love to get. He just knows how to play the game. He cuts off the weak side of the floor right now. I’m talking about 32 in red. Jack McVey, 29 years old, just out here competing with all that he’s got and he’s he’s produced well the last nine days in Vegas. 5 seconds left here in the half. Williams to Shoga. Two seconds. Shogun lets one go wide to the mark and that’ll do it for the first half. The Celtics with a 4839 lead here. A good team effort across the board by Boston. All right, coming up next, Jimmy’s summer league standouts. Stick around. We’ll be back in just a moment. It starts with you. Oh, okay. [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] Hey, [Music] hey, hey. [Music] [Music] is with the basketball action inside the Thomas and Max Center and welcome inside the arena alongside Jimmy Dykes. I’m George Sedanado. So Jimmy, let’s talk about this summer league. We’re on our final day here, but I know there have been a lot of guys that have stood out to you. Let’s start with Utah’s Palpowski. Yeah, Drew, I think he’s been great when he was in Vegas. And this is a guy that came here with he wasn’t too cool to be here and is, you know, this is not like he’s a rookie. He’s had time in in real NBA games, but I thought he showed a lot of versatility to be able to drive the ball. He knocked down shots from the perimeter. I think he just had control of the game getting leadership reps, which he’s a really big building piece for what Utah is trying to do right now. Very impressed with Philipki, who’s the leading scorer in the NBA summer league in Vegas. Yeah, secondyear guy. You want that guy to dominate here. He certainly did that. Did his job and moved on. Speaking of doing their job, a guy who’s had a little bit of a different path in Drew Timmy for the Brooklyn Nets. What did you make of him? It’s just hard to keep Drew Timmy off the floor. I if you look at what his game is, he’s not a conventional anything. He’s just kind of a unorthodox guy that can, you know, score the ball around the rim. He can step out and make plays. He’s just a winner. He’s been that way ever since he came out of high school in Texas when he got to Gonzaga. Just has a knack and a feel very good in that middle pick and roll dive action. His ability to put the ball on the floor was so impressive in Vegas this week. Drive it, got fouled, finished. I just think Drew Timmy is a guy that you want on your roster. He makes your club better and when he’s on the floor, he produces and he wins ball games for you. Absolutely. And a guy who helped win some ball games for Minnesota this past season, Terrence Shannon Jr., uh TJ did a fantastic job for this team. Last year, played an intrical part in a playoff win for them in the Western Conference Finals. This young man came here with business on his mind. Yeah, TJ’s always been that big, physical NBA body looking guard, even back to his days in Illinois. Plays through force, plays through contact. I was very impressed watching him when he was here in Vegas playing under control. He didn’t get sped up. He attacked at the right times. He saw the defense well as a lead guard and his ability to knock down those corner threes is so important especially in this league as his jump shot [Music] here from Thompson back center in Las Vegas alongside Jimmy Dyes. I’m George Sedano. Jimmy Amari Williams has had a variety of ways of impacting this game today for the Celtics. Yeah. The sevenfooter out of Kentucky with a 76 wingspan, but he’s a seven foot point guard offensively. You can do a lot of things with at the NBA level. He sees the floor so well. He reads it like a true point guard. But anytime he’s up top, man, that offense really opens up. He has fired some strikes in this game. He has four assists. And think about this, Amari Williams has eight rebounds. He’s only played 13 minutes. He’s getting one about every 90 seconds. A productive first half for Amari Williams. We talked about the front line needs right now for Boston. He’s going to find himself a minutes, I think, his first year in a Celtics uniform. Yeah, he’s certainly trending in that direction. He is a guy who’s in a position of need as you described. So, we’ll see. Again, this Celtics team, I don’t think anyone has a real feel for what they could be. You know, Jaylen Brown, obviously an all-star caliber player, all NBA caliber player, and Derek White, you want to talk about a consmate pro. So, with a championship culture still there with Joe Missoula and Brad Stevens leading the charge, I know the overunder in Vegas is 43 and a half, but wouldn’t surprise me in a wide open East if they’re a little more feisty than that. I I I agree with you. Now, Boston, they played the slowest pace last year. 96 offensive possessions per 48 minutes. And I think that’s going to change because that front court size has been vacated and they’re they’re going to be guard heavy. I think you’re going to see a faster pace. It’s been an emphasis for Boston in Las Vegas to push that thing up and down the floor. Boston in his zone to start the half here. And Hawks not able to convert. They have a foul on the floor on Jack White. And the Celtics inbound it near their own bench. Boston was so good last year, George, offensively. Part of the reason why they won 61 games, 120 points for every 100 possessions that they had. Watch out, Joseph with a good finish. Crowd starting to fill in here a little bit as they slowly trickle into the championship game. Norris lets it fly in and out. Put back, no good. They hit the deck for it. Flaggler rips it away and Atlanta comes up with it. Wait, and we have a travel. So, the Celtics will get a reprieve here. Well, just a strong effort hustle play right by Flaggler cuz that was like a 7030 ball. Him being the 30% guy, but he comes up with it. This thing gets on the floor and it looks like Greg has it right there 70% of the time. And Flaggler says, “Thank you very much.” with an easy rip. So Mari Williams, by the way, starts on the bench. His day may be done. A travel by Greg. So Greg in his place in the starting lineup. I was talking to Amari Williams before the game. I said, “What’s different so far at the NBA level?” He said, “Man, everything like the the speed of it, the reads that I have to have is all the information being thrown at me.” I I said, “How long will it take you to be comfortable and confident?” So, you know what? I’m I’m getting there every single day. And those are the kind of guys that develop. They fight it in the film room. And I know this about Amari Williams from watching him so many times at Kentucky last year. He loves ball and he loves to improve and work on his game. So the Celtics did their homework and getting Amari Williams in that second round. Welcome to the association, kid. That is it. Information flying at you pretty quickly. And you want guys, I do anyways. And you want a team that they don’t have to always color inside the lines. You don’t want guys that are robots and you have to teach them everything. They got to trust their instincts and cut it loose and let it go. And you want guys that can be efficient but color outside the lines. I want my team playing the same way. Joseph off the window there. Yeah, I’m with you wholeheartedly. You need you can’t have uh 15 Boy Scouts. You know, you got to have some guys who’ve got a little edge to him, too. White on the drive, kicks it to the corner and yeah, it looks like Murray might have stepped out there. In the NBA, they know they got the best athletes in the world to work with. And if you choke them down and you draw up plays that are from point A to point B to point C, back to point B, you’re taking their strength away. Do you give them structure lit? Yes. Do you teach them how you want to play the game with spacing and ball screen action? Yes. But at the end of the day, the trust factor between coaches in this league and players in this league much greater than between college basketball coaches and their kids. Well, you’re a professional. You got to be able to Yeah. act that way off the window for Greg. Good job by Greg to roll out of it. Show his numbers to the passer and became a big target on that middle die. I’d say a big component to that though of learning how to be a professional is who are the veterans on your roster. I think that has always played a huge factor in the NBA. Who are you learning from? We talked about it yesterday. The right the right influence on a rookie can extend that rookiey’s career overall by four or five years. Learning how to handle themsel on the road, decisions that you make with nutrition, how you rest, how you prepare, how you approach pregame, all those things. The wrong influence on a rookie will cut a rookie’s career short maybe by four or five years. That’s how important it is to get side by side with the right guy. Look at this Boston team, Al Horford, who’s been on this team on and off for the better part of six, seven years, maybe longer at this stage. And you want to talk about a pros pro. Gonzalez with the finish there. Alioop from Brown. But Horford, I mean, this guy is the consmate professional. That’s why even at almost 40, he’s still as sought after a free agent as possible. He’s just he’s contemplating retirement at this point, too. Well, there there’s not a better locker room guy in this league and over the last 10 years than Al Hor. And that’s the value that he has sideep for Murray. Short rebound Norris. And still an impactful defender. Brown misses everything there it looks like. and a fight for the ball. Jump ball between White and Greg. Yeah, I mean I remember watching a game last year. It was one of those Saturday night showcases with Mike Breen and Doris Burke and Richard Jefferson and our guy Dave Freried as the statistician here to our left and uh and Lisa Salters. And it was a Lakers Celtics game and the Celtics, excuse me, the Lakers were targeting Al Hford. were bringing him up on every screen and Al I I think he allowed one shot to go down the entire game. It was wild. They the strategy did not work in the Lakers favor. I I didn’t watch the game, but as you described it, I didn’t like the game plan going in. Why Why would you go at Al Horford who’s seen everything, understands every coverage that there’s ever been in the NBA? Horford number three pick in the 2007 draft out of Florida after winning some championships there. Blocked by Shogun. still playing from that draft. Kevin Durant, Al Horford, Mike Connley Jr. and Green. Excellent finish on the other end by Boston. I don’t know the third or fourth or fifth time Atlanta just no urgency at all in their transition defense. I talked about mental toughness. A great description of it is finding fuel on an empty tank. And I know I know most guys right now have an empty tank that are still in Vegas. And man, you got to fight through that. You got to be resilient like water hitting a rock. You don’t stop. You create a new path and gain momentum and keep surging. Brown created a path here, Jimmy. Those two athletes out in front of the defense. That’s an easy finish. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] talked about the number one pick in the draft, the main attraction here in Vegas this week, Cooper Flag. Well, the the numbers weren’t great in the first game, but man, was he active. And the fact that he got off 21 shots uh in his first game in this Vegas summer league told me a lot about him. And he bounced back and shot a high percentage in his game number two before they shut him down. He’s only 18 years old. And the value in this league for young guys continues to grow. And it doesn’t just stop right now as you see the turnover in the NBA. I I was I was kind of amazed at the Major League Baseball draft last week where Eli Willlets, 17 years old, the overall number one pick because those Major League Baseball guys see the thing same thing that the NBA looks for right now. How good are you at a young age and how much growth potential do you still have? and Cooper Flag, the number one overall pick in the NBA, and Eli Willlet, the number one overall pick in Major League Baseball, an 18year-old and a 17-year-old. Just tells you what scouts look for, at least part of it, is your potential going forward, no matter how good you are right now. And he’s going to a good situation. The expectation is Kyrie Irving should be back before the All-Star break. Three-pointer no good for Schulga. He’s got Anthony Davis on that roster. a bunch of veterans who have gone deep in the playoffs and they added a point guard in D’Angelo Russell to kind of fill the gaps as we have a foul here on Stevens and you know D’Angelo Russell has been around the NBA for a long time. Former number three pick in the NBA draft and again not a you’re looking for a stop gap at point guard that’s a pretty good player to have. Well, think about this. With all the advancement that we’ve made now with nutrition and the the health and recovery and strength experts we have on NBA staffs, Cooper Flag could be playing in the NBA in the year 2050. Sure. 2050 Cooper Flag could still be going at it. This is kind of wild. 2025. Think about that. It’s only 18. So, what will he be? 40. 43. I mean, LeBron hasn’t gotten there yet. Cooper flag. kind of guys. I wouldn’t put it past him. Johnson. A shot for Johnson there. Cooper flag just looks like he belongs on an NBA floor within the first couple minutes of a game. That size is unique. His defensive instincts are right there with guys that have played in the league for three or four years. Bridges gets held. that one on Kobe Johnson. But George, go go go back and watch any playoff game. If you can’t finish your cut or make your cut when you’re being held, you will not stick in this league. You’re going to be grabbed and held and be physical with the entire 48 minutes. And Bridget did a good job that time of continuing his cut even through some pretty heavy contact and it is a must in this league. By the way, our man Dave three is Johnson on the drive. That one rolls off. Says that if Cooper flag lasts till he’s 2050, he may be the first $2 billion player in the NBA. He could be. He could be. Shoga for three. Both you guys check back with me in 2050. We’ll check in with you. We’ll check in with you. I hope I’m here. I got to be honest. Smith looking for Johnson. Kobe Johnson on the drive. Kobe Johnson with the finish. What did Kobe Johnson do? Well, he got the ball on the move. He wasn’t standing still. on the catch. He got himself behind that pass and ran into it which gave him force going downhill with two long strides to the rim. A scoring move. Watch Johnson right here. Kobe Johnson is 66. Known for a defensive specialist as a college basketball player, but prior to him catching that basketball, he got on a dead sprint right there and just whips his defender and gets all kinds of speed coming downhill. all defensive defender. Played three years at USC, one at UCLA. His brother Jaylen, how many guys have done that on Atlanta? Played both at USC and UCLA. That That’s got to be There’s not very many. It is a short list. How many have played at Duke and North Carolina? Right. Indiana and Purdue. Scott for three. Scott gets that one to drop. So Scott now couple of threes. He’s got seven boards as well. 12-point ball game. Atlanta still within striking distance. Smith dumps it in. And a fight for it. It’ll be a jump ball. So Stevens able to corral it in. We’ll step aside for the moment. 12-point ball game here in Vegas in the third. [Music] [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Jimmy, Alyssa and I will have the Grizzlies and Clippers here on ESPNU. Then at 10 Eastern, 7 Pacific on ESPN, the championship game between the Kings and the Hornets. So many undefeated teams here at summer league. It was very topheavy. Either teams won a bunch of games. They were either four and0 or three and one and a lot of one and three and 0 and four teams. But we have a 4-0 team here in Atlanta and a 3-1 with the Celtics in the consolation bracket. But I’m certainly looking forward to seeing Khan Canipple and the Hornets and that group and a very experienced Sacramento team. They’ve won the summer league championship twice. Couple of those guys that won the G- League Championship most recently, the Stockton Kings. So, it should be a good matchup. Yeah, Isaac Jones was terrific in the semi-final yesterday, 36 points. We talked about he went 13 out of 17 from the floor and Khan Canipple just continues to be one of those whatever it takes to win type guys. Very skilled, very tough, sees the floor. His ability to read the game just makes him, I don’t know, a half step, maybe a step faster than he probably natural speed would tell. Here’s numbers here at summer league gotten better. Well, he’s he’s got a little bit of everything in his game and his shot fake ability, his ability to drive the ball, make plays off the bounce, make contested threes, smart enough defensively to not be a liability. Two seconds on the shot clock. Gonzalez open for three. Lets it rip. Misses wide to the mark and the ball is staying here with Boston off of Atlanta. He just needs work on that jump shot. That time his base was not on balance. his feet got quite a bit outside of his shoulders and that his feet have been different to me almost on every shot that he’s taken. Boston loses it here. No, they’ll say last tip by Atlanta by Flaggler. It went through a couple of different hands, but here’s the jump shot again for Gonzalez as you were referencing. Yeah, you build your shot from the from the ground up and look how wide his feet get. I mean, his feet are outside of his shoulders. I I don’t love that. Now, if you’re going to consistently do it, that’s one thing. But I think his footwork, the discipline that he needs trained with, and it’ll come at this level, but he certainly needs some work. What a finish there by Wong. Athletic move. Smith from the free throw line. The pull up in and out. You’re not the former ACC player of the year like Wong and don’t have the ability to score. He’s not the biggest bodied kid, but we’ve seen some guys that have got it done at this level, but very crafty has always been, even back to his college days. Finished off at about a 65% on his rim shots. Celtics up 14. We saw Canipple’s numbers earlier as we were talking about the championship game and we saw Flags numbers a moment ago. that first game. There’s a lot of pressure on that first game cuz the buildings are packed. People want to see you in that first game. And by the way, the other team doesn’t want you to get some numbers on them, too. No, they don’t. Especially guys that maybe been in the league for a year prior to you, you know, Caniple and Cooper Flag, Trey Johnson, I think, is the best bucket getter we’ve had in Vegas. All those guys have faced that first game, and I thought they handled it well. The stats maybe don’t back it up. Just watch him on film, the confidence they played with. Very impressive. Yeah, I would agree. You like Trey Johnson? Oh, he might be one of my favorite players out of the entire draft. If you want to talk about a guy who can score at every level, Gonzalez gets fouled, he’ll go to the free throw line. To me, through the first two games that everybody played, I thought he was the most impressive one out of all the lottery picks. He worked harder than anybody I saw last year in college basketball. out of all the games that I covered, I think I had texted four or five times, and he was always always working prior to practice, working after practice, the kind of guy that wakes up with a with a plan every day. I I I love his life about him. I love his smile, a little joy that Trey Johnson plays with, but he is just a guaranteed bucket getter, I think, in this league. Oh, no doubt. You want to talk about, we’ve been talking about elite skill sets. Yeah. He can score and shoot from anywhere really. and and we saw that in those first two games. That is something that translates right away, especially on a young team that he’s on. He should be able to find minutes early and often, I think. Yeah, he’s all up 6’5. He’s got great size and a a great mindset. The confidence that he plays with for a young kid is uncommon. Largest lead here for the Celtics at 18. Hawks turn it over again. Wong gets a poke from behind, but it’ll stay Celtics ball. 49 seconds left here in the third. Gray on the drive, gets all the way to the cup and gets it to drop. Well, Flagler gave that to him about the timeline trying to force him down the side in the middle of the floor and a good read and a good attack of the room. An 110 run for the Celtics. McVey fouled on his drive. I mean, Flaggler’s trying to down this action right here. Look, he’s on the side trying to keep it on the side, but you’re you’re forcing that thing into a no help situation because you’re not going to come off the corner and a good read. Really well done by Gray to take what the defense gave you. Your guy McVey at the free throw line. Summer League Access is one tap away with the NBA app. Download today to follow tomorrow’s stars and keep up with every game with realtime highlights and scores. McVey played for the Australian summer Olympic team in 2024. Averaged 16 points in Las Vegas. 62% from the field, 47% from three. Perfect from the free throw line. There’s a lot of stuff to like about McVey. By the way, I hope Cory Alexander is listening. I call him your guy. Not not a my guy. He’s a your guy. There you go. 17 seconds left. About 7sec differential game clock shot clock. Brown wide open for three. How about the pass by Greg to first of all to crowd that basketball on the move and have the awareness of find again that backside bomb corner three. That was Bridges for three. Flaggler step back. He gets fouled on the three-pointer by Isaiah Wong. He got into the feet of the shooter. Wong. Here’s what I’m talking about. is you jump and get into those feet, you’re very, very close to being penalized for it. And we have a timeout by Boston with 1.4 seconds left. They’re going to challenge. Yeah, they should. Yeah. I wish we had this rule in college basketball. Protect those shooters feet. This one goes better with the walls. This is [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Boston is alleging is that Flaggler kicked his leg out. So if that’s the case, you know, then it would be Boston’s ball and no foul on Wong. So let’s see. That rule instituted as the Reggie Miller rule. Well, Reggie Miller’s he’s had his feet interfered with as a shooter time and time again. I talked about we need this rule in college basketball. landing zone. Yes. So many ankles get turned and foot injuries because defenders come right into the foot landing area of those shooters. And here’s Cameron Gelinus. After review, it has been determined that the shooter kicks his leg out in an unnatural shooting motion. Therefore, the call on the floor is changed to a no call. The challenge is successful. Boston will retain their timeout and their ability to challenge once more. At the time of the whistle, neither team had imminent possession. Therefore, we will have a jump ball at center circle between any two players that were in the game. So, there you have it. So, that was as good of a description of a replay that I’ve ever seen, right? I mean, there’s a lot to cover there, but there’s that right leg kick out. It’s It’s just enough and a good use of Matt Reynolds and his staff to say, “Hey, go look at this. This is what we saw.” And the call goes in Boston’s favor. So, jump ball. It won’t be Boston ball. I thought maybe they would have uh given it to Boston. It’ll be a jump ball instead. And Atlanta wins the tap. Johnson with the launch, but that’ll be after the horn anyway. All right, we’re going to the fourth quarter. 21-point lead for Boston. I look different. I played different. and you were the greatest defense ever to play the game. Winning becomes a lifestyle. From Rose Bowl festivities to major league ballparks, ESPN Experiences takes you behind the scenes and inside Heat. Heat. N. [Music] [Music] Heat. [Music] [Music] Heat. [Music] for them as a young player out of Duke will be back from that horrific injury. And this is a team that people think can contend in the Eastern Conference, Jimmy. Well, they can. They were 40 and 42 this year. They finished eighth in the East. Now, they’re led by we all know the NBA leader in assistant, Trey Young, who it’s amazing. He’s still only weighs 165 pounds. How he’s held up in this. Soaking wet, by the way. Soaking wet, by the way. What what I like about Atlanta is how fast they play and how good they are offensively. I think only Memphis and Chicago played at a faster pace this year in terms of possessions per game. Atlanta had like 102 offensive possessions per game for 48 minutes, which is fast. Where they need work is on the defensive end of the floor. They’ve got to get better. They were 28th out of 30 teams in the NBA in field goal percentage defense. And 28 out of 30 teams in the NBA in three point percentage defense allowed way too many points. 119 points per game. And that’s a well that’s an area of growth that this Atlanta program has to take, right? Yeah. Hicks steps out there. The thing with that that is interesting to me is that you look at Quinn Snder teams historically, those teams in Utah were all great defensive teams. And I just think the personnel is not there yet necessarily and it’s challenging obviously with with with Trey who’s an unbelievable offensive player put back there by Joseph but you know defensively he’s a guy that people are going to call up and they’re going to challenge every time and it all starts man it all starts there with a point of attack on that defensive ball pressure and getting that ball under control but Atlanta has got to find a way if they’re going to climb up in the east out eight position, their defense is where it has to get better. So, you got to get guys around him. You got to make sure all those guys around him can defend at an elite level. And I think they’re trying to get to that point. That one trickles in for Atlanta. Flaggler again. Flaggler has seven points now. Greg not shy and you see why. Three ball for Greg. Whether it’s a G-League, international, whatever it is, that’s where the game has gone. Bigs that can set a screen and pop out of it and put pressure on that defensive fiveman. If you switch, you throw it inside. If you don’t, you pick and pop to a three. Flaggler on the step back. Way off the mark. Rebound there. put back is good. So, Joseph gets that one. He’s got nine and nine in this game. Nelly Junior Joseph maybe the only guy that I that I can think of off the top of my head that played for both Rick Patino and Richard Patina. That’s right. They played at Iona and New Mexico. Yeah, that’s true. One thing he’s done in Las Vegas is averaging six rebounds in just 17 minutes. So, anytime you look at a stat sheet and a guy is getting one rebound every three minutes, that’s an active guy. And that’s what uh Nelly Jr. Joseph has been. Well, he’s I believe had over 1,400 rebounds in his career in college. Tied for 40th most in NCAA history. 1412 as a matter of fact. So, he’s got something that he can do every night no matter where he lands, GLeague or overseas. I think it’s interesting that it that it is Nelly Jr. Joseph, not Nelly Joseph. Junior. Yeah. Originally from Nigeria, attended the NBA Academy Africa in Sagal. Wong. Wong with the finish. Gets the hoop in the harm. Good job by Wong because he was absolutely getting grabbed and held when he left the floor, but played through it. And again, you go back and watch playoff basketball defensively, if you get your guy squared up and his chest on chest, you can get a layway with a lot of physical contact. But as soon as you lose your angle, that’s a foul every time. But a good job by Wong, who plays stronger than what his body would indicate. Wong the all-time leader in minutes at the University of Miami, over 4,100 in his career. And another turnover here. Atlanta headed the other direction. That somehow gets to McVey. Put back no good. Boston on the run. And here’s Wong. Throws up a wild shot. Way off. Thought he got fouled. Ball in the air. Flaggler comes up with it. White on the move. White gets the and one. Those are the kind of plays that Jack White has made throughout his entire career going back to college. just hustle, effort plays, toughness plays. Does a good job of locking his eyes and his chin in on the rim. Understand that Greg’s coming in with if you’re going to foul there, man, come hard with two hands and don’t let that ball get up on the rim. 27 years old out of Duke out here. Just fight for a spot somewhere, some way. Catch somebody’s eye and continue to continue on your path is what Jack White’s trying to do. Two-time captain Purdue Brown on the spin from the elbow. No good. White with the board. Oh, what a find by Johnson to Smith and a timeout on the floor. Yeah, Matt Reynolds not happy with his first 10 seconds of his defense on that possession. Atlanta pushes this thing up. Not with a lot of speed, just a breakdown. A bad matchup is better than no matchup. Celtics that time, no matchup at all. NBA 2K26 Summer League, is proudly sponsored by NBA 2K26, rated E for everyone. [Music] Hey, hey, hey. [Music] [Music] about 20 the lead for the Celtics and now down to 14. So within striking distance with about 6 minutes to go in this one. George Sedata, Jimmy Dykes, and Alyssa Lang with you. Greg fires away. Greg nothing but that. Boy, he’s shooting with confidence, isn’t he? 610, 611 out of Gonzaga. knows offense. If you play for the Zags, you know how to run offense as a big guy on the perimeter. He’s got eight points now and a foul and they come out the timeout. Matt Reynolds wasn’t happy with his defense. He calls timeout and then goes immediately to spread that floor. That’s just simple five out offense and finds 52 and white on that right 45 degree slot three that he has knocked down a couple of times in this game. Atlanta. Great pass there and a good finish on the follow as Johnson picks up the loose change. [Music] 15-point game. Wong flips it to the corner. Now Gray surveying. Greg on the drive. Greg dumps it off for Brown. And no, a 24second shot clock violation. Greg had an angle at the shot. I thought Yeah, he did. He should have taken it himself just about a half second too late on the delivery and the release of the basketball. Greg gets right there. here. I mean, at that point, you just got to go up and a crowded pass and just doesn’t quite get out of the hands of Brown in time. And George, for the most part, the guys that we’re watching in Vegas, they’re not going to be if they’re on an NBA roster, the guy. You’re going to get limited minutes. But you look at the league, only 12 guys in all of NBA last year averaged 36 minutes or more. and Josh Hart led the league at 37 and a half minutes per game. So there’s there’s minutes out there for guys that can carve out a spot and do what you do for those five or six minutes you come in. And that’s what you’re trying to show right now on this last date of summer ball in Las Vegas. Good defense by the Celtics and good offense on the other end as Bridges connects on a three-pointer. Bridges have been very good at those corner threes and Good job of sprinting. A vicious violent sprint by Bridges be set in transition. Johnson short on the three. You mentioned the guys in the minutes. Almost all the top I I believe five of the top six are Knicks. They play for Tom. Yeah, they do. Bridges gets an open look. Short on that one. And a whistle. It’ll stay here. defense to offense on this one. Well, Bridges played at West Virginia and then Baylor, but a good job of running the floor by the Celtics. Finally, the message was sent by Matt Reynolds in the last timeout about transition defense. And then Bridges, boom, feet set by body behind the ball. The pass delivered right in the shot pocket. And there’s no dropping the basketball for Bridges like we saw earlier from Gonzalez. That thing was in the shot pocket and up and out at a pretty quick rate. Bridges has that pass. Three three-pointers, 11 points. And oh, what a block from behind, but a f. No, they’ll say out of bounds. They’ll count the basket. Pardon me. Pardon me. Goal time. So So Scott threw the ball away. Didn’t get his dober down. Sprints from behind. 45 in white. It’s your turnover. So he’s doing all he can to get there to erase the mistake. I I I don’t like the turnover. I love the effort after the turnover, though. Hey, that makes sense. Yeah, I’m with you. You got to hustle if you mess up. Bill Self once told me the best sign of toughness is not letting one mistake become two. Wong has to fire, gets it off and gets the three-pointer. Wong has baldled in this game. What, his 23rd point, maybe 24th. Jack White with the finish on the other end. Wong’s got 15. How can you score on one end and when within 3 seconds allow a layup at the other? I’m sure Matt Reynolds is asking him himself right now in his staff. Bridges, he lets one loose again. Air ball on that one, but Scott comes up with the save and we’ve got a whistle. Shot clock did not reset. It should be at 14. I’ve checked that. They’ve now pushed it to seven. So, I I think they did reset it and they shouldn’t have. Oh, gotcha. Either way, the shots got to get up right now. Greg fires. Nothing but net. Yes, sir. Ben Greg making the most of his last Sunday in Las Vegas. Big guys that can stroke it, man. You can find your way onto a roster somewhere. Murray. White again. White answers on the other end. Ben Craig shot that ball from what 27 28 ft with ease. Yeah. Logo land. Greg’s like, “Feed me, man. I’m hot.” Baseline drive and he gets that one to bounce in. How did Atlanta get mismatched without Boston having to run any offense? I mean, Greg had the point guard on him from the get-go. And now we got a three-point competition here with Kobe Johnson on the other end. So, two minutes to go. 16-point game. The skill level in this league, even at this level, with guys just trying to fight for spots. Another three for Gray. I mean, it is it’s just ridiculous. You nail it. And a turnover. Boston comes up with it. Scott picked it off. I mean, Georgia, it’s a pretty simple statement, but if you can’t shoot the ball, your time is limited in this league. I agree. And you go watch any pro game when those guys are open, it’s going in at a high high clip. The game is so hard if you can’t shoot straight. So, they had to correct the shot clock again. Bridges on the drive, stops, pops, and gets that one to drop. Good job with the mid-range game. Greg initiates that with that zoom action. The dribble at got a back cut and finds Bridges and make a play out of the corner. Timeout. Hawks will step aside. This one winded down here for the Celtics. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Coming up next here on ESPNU, Memphis and the Clippers. And then on ESPN tonight, Jimmy, summer league championship, Sacramento and Charlotte, 10 Eastern, 7 Pacific. Dave Pash, Cory Alexander on the call. I’ll be patrolling the sidelines for that one. Playing for a ring. Yeah. Talked about yesterday, the NBA doesn’t give a lot of rings out. And you got a chance to win one. And I expect that to be a highlevel game. Oh yeah. Yeah. Those two teams have been playing excellent basketball. They ran through their opponents in the semifinal. Boston has played really good team basketball today. You look at their stat sheet. They got 23 assists. Four guys in double figures. Brown Bridges, Isaiah Wong, and Ben Greg. They move the ball. They shared the ball. They’re going to have to play faster this year, I think, with the hits to their front line. And the shot opportunities are going to be there when Jason Tatum if and when he comes back. And Brad Stevens and Joe Missoula trying to rebuild a Celtic roster. And they’ve seen some good things, I’m sure, out of Vegas the last nine or 10 days with these guys, including your guy, Amari Williams, my guy, who uh sat in the second half, but had six, eight, and four in the first half. Bridges, another three. He has shot the ball really well in this game and very confident now. His fourth made three. Yep. 16 points for him. Largest lead for the Celtics. 24 at the moment. Oh, nifty shot there. Count the basket. I just don’t understand defenders getting on the side of ball handlers and forcing the ball down where there’s no help below you again. That’s exactly what happens here. And Flagman says, “You’re going to force me down. I’ll go down.” And an acrobatic trip shot at the end to get to the other side and get it to drop. Square the ball up and stay in front of the ball. Flagler with nine points gets the and one and the three-point play the old school way. You know, one of my prized possessions in life, what’s that? A Larry Bird jersey. Oh, yeah. I bet. Watching the Celtics. Got to spend the night at his house once. My buddy Joe Klein played for the Celtics. Oh yeah, we’re driving home for the summer and we we spent the night in French lick and played golf for a couple of days. That sounds marrying my wife. The best best two days of my life. I hope one ranks higher than the other for your sake. And a shot there by Flaggler. So another answer and that’ll do it. A 21point win for the Celtics, Jimmy. And you know, you mentioned the four guys in double figures, but there are a number of guys who came very close to getting those double figure marks as well. A total team effort by the Celtics. No doubt. And I go to their assist numbers again. 24 assists on 37 makes. They moved the ball well from the opening tip. They shared it. They got the thing side to side. Amari Williams was a big part of it in the first half, especially as a 7 foot point guard. But a lot of good things out the
Atlanta hawks vs Boston Celtics | Full Game | Jul 20, 2025 | NBA 2K26 Summer League Today
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