DeRozan leads Raptors over Rockets; Cavs survive
DeMar DeRozan scored 23 points in just 20 minutes of action to help Toronto to a 100-91 victory over Houston in the first game of the day at the Thomas & Mack Center in the NBA Vegas Summer League.
Bobby Brown added 20 points on 6 of 7 shooting from both the field and the free-throw line for the Raptors. Joey Dorsey had 13 points and 12 rebounds in the victory.
Jermaine Taylor led Houston with 17 points, and Patrick Patterson added 14 points and nine rebounds.
Across the corridor, Cleveland got 18 points and nine rebounds from J.J. Hickson in an 88-82 triumph over the D-League Select team at Cox Pavilion.
Pooh Jeter added 17 points, including a 4-for-4 effort from the free-throw line in the final seconds to seal the win. Tasmin Mitchell had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Russell Robinson had a game-high 20 points for the D-League squad. Mike Gansey, a breakout star yesterday, finished 1-for-6 from the floor and scored jut two points.
White men can do stuff
Lee Cummard, the former BYU forward, has impressed someone with his play for the Sacramento Kings.
Former Kings guard Bobby Jackson did a radio interview today on ESPN Radio 1100 with local radio legend Seat Williams and some guy named Mitch Moss.
He told the duo that he has been blown away by the performance of Cummard in practice and the team’s one summer league game.
While we missed the interview, Williams paraphrased it to us.
“Who’s this white boy all over the place, doing everything?” Jackson said he asked fellow members of the Kings organization. “I didn’t even know he was on the roster. I had never heard of him.”
Wait. You mean to tell me they don’t get The Mountain in Sacramento?
Cummard will be in action in the Mack in just a few minutes as the Kings take on the Lakers.
Cleveland made its summer league debut and new head coach Byron Scott was up in the stands taking in the action.
At times, he seemed to have a pained expression on his face as he watched over the summer version of his team rally in the fourth quarter to defeat the D-League Select team.
It almost looked as if Scott was wondering what exactly he was getting into taking over a decimated franchise left high and dry by the departure of LeBron James.
Although J.J. Hickson had a very good game, he’s not going to be the guy to erase the memories of the two-time MVP.
Scott better hope he can salvage something out of whatever roster he can put together next season, especially if James and the Heat win a title.
Can you imagine the letter Dan Gilbert would send Scott if he had to fire him for missing the playoffs and watch James win a ring in Miami?