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Two weeks ago, we previewed a few former Wildcats who were set to participate in Las Vegas Summer League, which ran from July 8-18. Well, it’s July 20. So let’s take a look at how they fared under the pale, slightly dimmed lights of Vegas.
Alex Olah
Olah kicked off his first Summer League stint with a Friday night matchup against the Lakers, a game that featured two top-six picks in Brandon Ingram and Buddy Hield. For this reason there was certainly some level of intrigue surrounding the game. Olah was unable to contribute to this intrigue; he spent the game on the bench, ending with a DNP by coach’s decision.
Olah didn’t let something as trivial as ‘playing time’ dull his impact on this contest, though. Here’s Buddy Hield’s first made three of the game, but the real highlight comes from the bench
Look at the big guy elevate!
Olah’s production would eventually exceed moral support, although it’s noble to see him embracing the role player lifestyle so early in his career. Olah played in the Pelicans’ remaining four games, finishing his time in Vegas averaging 17.5 minutes per game and scoring 6.5 points per game on 56.5 percent shooting. His peak performance came on July 13 against the Miami Heat, when he started the game for New Orleans, registered 16 minutes and scored 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting. The Pelicans fell to the Heat by four and were eliminated from the Vegas tournament (take a look at the full bracket here) in the process.
Listen to Olah discuss his experience at his first Summer League the night before the Pelicans wrapped up their time in Vegas here.
Drew Crawford
Crawford is becoming a regular Summer League participant; 2016 marked Crawford’s third year in a row playing and also his second consecutive year playing with Toronto (he played five games for them in Las Vegas in 2015).
Crawford made a steady impact for the Raptors, averaging 18 minutes per game and eight points per game on 50 percent shooting over five contests, the highlight being a 13-point, five-rebound performance in a playoff victory against Golden State on July 14. Crawford scored at least six points in every game he played and his shooting percentages (50 percent from the floor, 33 percent from three-point range) were both Summer League career highs for him.
Dwane Casey described Drew Crawford as "a great kid" & "right on the edge" of being an NBA player. Will get a shot to make the team.
— Inside NU (@insidenu) July 9, 2016
Toronto advanced to the quarterfinals of the tournament schedule before falling to the eventual runner-up Minnesota Timberwolves by just two points. Crawford had 6 points and 4 rebounds in the losing effort.
Reggie Hearn
We actually didn’t talk about Hearn in our preview two weeks ago (sorry Reggie), but Hearn made five appearances for the D-League Select team in Las Vegas. Hearn parlayed a 2015-2016 season in which he averaged 25.8 minutes per game for the Reno Bighorns into an invite from the D-League squad.
Hearn has earned himself a reputation as a three-point threat in D-League circles, he averaged 11.5 points per game for Reno last season, shot 44.2 percent from deep and even participated in the D-League Three Point Shootout back in February. This reputation preceded him in his five-game Vegas stint, as Hearn shot a balmy 45 percent on four three-point attempts per game. In an 18-point victory over Houston, Hearn scored 15 points and shot 3-of-6 from deep.
The D-League Select team was bounced in the first round of the tournament in a 37-point trouncing at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers. Hearn scored 8 points and shot 2-of-4 from three in defeat.
Tre Demps
There’s something about leaving Northwestern that turns people into champions.
First it was Trevor Siemian, who rode Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler’s coattails to a Super Bowl ring. Now, Demps, who received DNPs in all of Chicago’s seven contests, is an NBA Summer League champion. While, of course, Demps didn’t actually play in the championship game on Sunday, it’s worth mentioning that that game was absolutely nuts. We saw Tyus Jones’ best Steph Curry impersonation followed by a gutsy Denzel Valentine off-balance answer to send the game to overtime, in the final ten ticks alone. Everything culminated as time expired in OT, when Valentine hit a turning fall-away jumper at the buzzer to seize the Las Vegas Summer League crown for Chicago.
And Demps looks just thrilled...
Congrats to the @chicagobulls Summer League team on winning the Championship! #bigthingstocome #SeeRed pic.twitter.com/CbsX1FI6Kn
— Jimmy Mitchell (@JmitchellQb7) July 19, 2016
Demps will look to jumpstart his professional career overseas, as he reportedly signed with Belfius Mons-Hainaut of the Belgian Scooore! League yesterday.