Best Summer League performances of all time

Welcome back to another edition of Enjoy Basketball!

Congratulations to the Portland Trail Blazers for winning Summer League! They took down the New York Knicks in the championship, taking away New Yorkers’ hopes of winning a ring in the sport of basketball anytime soon… Sorry, low blow. What's even funnier is that Damian Lillard didn't even know the Blazers won it.

But while Summer League has officially come to a close, it’s fun to take some time to reflect. There were a lot of impressive performances this summer. Guys like Cam Thomas, Moses Moody, and Trey Murphy III all dropped 30-point games. So, it got us thinking…

What are the best Summer League performances of all time? Which players have made a splash over the summer, and what happened to them in the NBA?

Let’s take a look.

But first...

Which city should the NBA expand to? If your top option isn't listed, let us know on Twitter!

Anthony Morrow, Golden State Warriors (2009) - 47 pts

Of course, the record for the most points ever scored in a Summer League game had to be on this list. In 2009, Anthony Morrow set that record, dropping 47 points in a tightly-contested win over the New Orleans Hornets. He led the Golden State Warriors to victory, outdueling Marcus Thornton in the process. The funniest part? Stephen Curry was on Morrow’s team… but only scored nine points.

Morrow went on to have a fairly successful NBA career. He played in the league for nine total seasons and averaged double-digit scoring numbers five times. The 6’5 guard made appearances for seven different franchises, and unfortunately, he never eclipsed his 47-point Summer League mark. Though, he did get close, dropping 42 points in a game with the New Jersey Nets in 2012.

Lonzo Ball, Los Angeles Lakers (2017) - 36 pts, 8 rebs, 11 ast

Those are just the stats we could fit in the headline. Lonzo Ball also totaled five steals and two blocks in this game, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Ball was absolutely incredible during Summer League ahead of his rookie season, and he was a part of what might have been the best Summer League roster of all time. He, Kyle Kuzma, Alex Caruso, Ivica Zubac, Thomas Bryant, Thomas Bryant, and Matt Thomas dominated opponents en route to winning the Summer League title.

Ball is still a prominent figure in the NBA today, although he missed the latter portion of last season due to a still-lingering injury. When healthy, he’s the starting point guard of the Chicago Bulls, although his jump shot has changed considerably since Summer League, and based on recent results, it’s for the better.

Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz (2017) - 37 pts, 3 rebs, 8 stl

Apparently, 2017 was an elite year. Not only did Ball put up his insane performance, but Donovan Mitchell did this. He had 37 points and a ridiculous eight steals in a LOSS to the Memphis Grizzlies. Mitchell had absolutely no help in this game, as Dillon Brooks’ Grizzlies were able to take down the Jazz.

Obviously, Mitchell has found plenty of success since his Summer League days. He’s a three-time All-Star and has led the Jazz to the playoffs in every season since he’s been in the league. However, he may be leading a new team to the playoffs next year… Hi, Knicks fans.

Anthony Randolph, Golden State Warriors (2009) - 42 pts, 4 stl, 3 blk

Yes. This is the same Warriors team that featured Anthony Morrow and his 47-point game. In fact, this performance came two games prior to Morrow’s explosion. Anthony Randolph set the record for most points in a Summer League game just to have his own teammate break it two days later. He also added four steals and three blocks to his totals.

Randolph’s NBA career wasn’t as impressive as Morrow’s, but he did spend six years in the league with four different franchises. He topped the double-digit mark just once and never got very close to beating out his 42-point mark. That being said, he did score 31 points in an NBA game for the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2011.

Tre Jones, San Antonio Spurs (2021) - 34 pts, 8 rebs, 9 ast

This is about as close to a 30-point triple-double someone can get. Tre Jones exploded for the San Antonio Spurs during Summer League in 2021. His massive performance was capped off with not one but two game-winning plays. Jones hit what would be the game-winning layup with 0.9 seconds left on the clock and then followed it up by nabbing the game-winning steal.

Jones didn’t play too much in his rookie season, but his minutes skyrocketed during his sophomore campaign. He’s shown flashes of serious potential and should have even more room to improve next year. With Derrick White and Dejounte Murray both being traded in the span of a few months, Jones is primed to be the Spurs’ starting point guard next season.

LeBron, DeRozan play in Drew League

For the first time since 2011, LeBron James decided to play in the Drew League. And not only that, but he teamed up with Bulls star DeMar DeRozan. The pair popped off, as one would expect, but only managed to win by one point. Regardless, it was super fun to see the two stars shine.

James ended the game with 42 points, 16 rebounds, and three assists on 18-of-26 shooting from the floor, while DeRozan had 30 points and 14 rebounds on 9-of-23 shooting from the field. Kyrie Irving was expected to play in the game, too, but he didn’t show up. From the looks of it, he helped Lakers assistant Phil Handy coach his camp instead.

NBA GMs mad at Gobert, Murray trades

According to Zach Lowe of ESPN, many NBA GMs around the league are mad at the Rudy Gobert and Dejounte Murray trades, calling them “reckless.” Lowe explained that while all GMs know there will always be a certain element of risk in all trades, they believe these deals went beyond that.

“But there is always risk, no matter how great the players involved,” wrote Lowe. “Several front-office executives around the league used a word beyond 'risk' to describe the recent Atlanta and Minnesota deals: reckless.”

The Jazz got back five players, four first-round picks, and a pick swap for Gobert, while the Spurs received three first-round picks, a pick swap, Danilo Gallinari, and Jock Landale for Murray.

Jazz hire Jason Terry

As reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Jazz have hired former NBA player Jason Terry as an assistant coach. He will serve on new head coach Will Hardy’s staff. Terry joins Utah after being the head coach of the Denver Nuggets’ G League team, the Grand Rapids Gold.

Terry spent 19 seasons in the NBA with six different franchises. He spent the bulk of his career with the Dallas Mavericks and won a title with them in 2011. The Jet held career averages of 13.4 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists.

Celtics Shot-Maker Matt Ryan, the One NBA Summer League Player Everyone Is Rooting For - Sherrod Blakely (Full Court Press)

Faith plays a key role for Rockets assistant Mahmoud Abdelfattah on groundbreaking journey - Jonathan Feigen (Houston Chronicle)

NBA summer league 2022: Biggest surprises and disappointments so far in Las Vegas - NBA Insiders (ESPN)

Shareef O’Neal’s long and winding road is just getting started - Cooper Halpern (Silver Screen and Roll)

A.J. Lawson proved he has the skills to play at the next level during Summer League - Doyle Rader (Mavs Moneyball)

At this point in the NBA world, there’s good news and bad news. The good news is that Summer League was awesome and provided us with some great insight into what players could be great at the next level. The bad news is that we won’t be able to watch NBA basketball for a few months.

But luckily for NBA fans, the offseason is far from over. Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant could still be traded at any point, and that alone should be enough to keep fans on the hook for a long, long time. The NBA truly is the best reality television in the world.

That'll be it for us. Thanks for reading. See y'all next time.

Last Trivia Answer: The answer to Friday’s trivia question is Jack Cooley and Dionte Christmas, who both appeared in 32 Summer League games. Ironically enough, both ended up playing in more Summer League games than NBA games. Cooley played in 23 NBA games, while Christmas appeared in 31.

Today’s Trivia Question: In the history of Summer League, there have been 16 MVPs (Cam Thomas and Davion Mitchell were co-MVPs in 2021). Of the 16, only two were not first-round selections. Who were the two second-round picks to be named Summer League MVP?