2023 NBA Summer League Winners And Losers: Centers

July 25, 2023

Alex Fischbein discusses several young NBA centers whose stock increased or decreased after their 2023 Summer league performances.

What's up, Rotoballers! Let's get to wrapping things up in terms of the 2023 NBA Summer League. The center position has a lot of different archetypes that can stick in the league but we're starting to see a bit of a renaissance with the big men that have taken over the league. Which prospects can impact the game as much as Joel Embiid or Nikola Jokic? We won't get that far ahead of ourselves in this piece, but one can dream, right?

We're going to take a look back at the three summer leagues that took place and discuss some winners and losers. Every year, there are players or teams that nail the draft with some amazing steals toward the bottom of the draft or just some players that seem to be early developers. Then, there are the head-scratching draft picks that people label as a bust quite early on. This list is going to take a look at all the prospects from rookies to second-year players that are listed at the center position.

So, why don't we get this show on the road and discuss our winners and losers of the 2023 NBA Summer League?

Summer League Winners

1. Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City Thunder

Technically, Chet Holmgren is also a rookie this coming season and if the summer league is any indication, he could give Victor Wembanyama a run for his money in the Rookie of the Year voting.

Holmgren flashed every bit of potential that made him the unicorn of last year's draft. The way that he was hyped up before getting hurt last summer made him sound like the American version of Wembanyama. His defensive timing and IQ are beyond special and he hasn't even played an official NBA game yet. Over the span of four games in Salt Lake City and Las Vegas, the 21-year-old averaged 3.5 blocks with a crazy defensive rating of 92.0.

His offense showed a bit of rust at first while in Salt Lake City but he started heating up once he got to Vegas. Three-point shooting will come along as he gets to play game speed more often, but he was still able to average 20.5 points per contest during his two games in Vegas. On top of that, he grabbed 9.5 boards, dished 2.0 assists, and swiped one steal per game.

Full speed ahead on the Holmgren hype train!

2. Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs

If we're being completely honest, the only way Wembanyama was going to be considered a summer league loser is if he completely tanked the two games he played in historic fashion. Instead, he had a shaky first performance, then came back with a big second game which was good enough for the Spurs to sit him until training camp.

Wembanyama's three-point shooting, much like Chet Holmgren's, wasn't the best. During his first game, there was an obvious nervousness about his game with a packed arena all relishing in their first chance to see one of the biggest prospects since LeBron James. His midrange shot looked forced at times until he stepped back on the court for his second game. His confidence shifted back to what he knew he could do and it shined through the entire contest.

22 points, 10 rebounds, and two blocks in 22 minutes while shooting 64% from the floor is a stat line that anyone would love in both fantasy and real life. Every time he goes up against the elite bigs in the league, it's going to be a huge storyline. All of us have already imagined how he'll fare against the likes of Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid.

3. Orlando Robinson, Miami Heat

Wembanyama and Holmgren are the two most popular and obvious answers to summer league winners when it comes to the center position. The next best center to hit the hardwood this July was none other than Orlando Robinson.

The 23-year-old posted the second-highest mark for points per game out of everyone that participated in the Vegas summer league with 25.8. He also contributed 9.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and even 1.5 made threes per game. The three-point stroke wasn't even part of his game last season during his 31 appearances for the Heat and he only a few of them during last year's summer league. This time around, he put up 21 of them in six games while knocking down eight.

Robinson flashed a midrange hook, solid post moves, and threw in some playmaking abilities just for good measure. With Omer Yurtseven leaving for Utah, his competition for backup minutes comes down to Thomas Bryant. If Robinson can continue to play as he did in July against second units, he could end up being a very valuable piece for this Heat team that could be in desperate need of depth players if they pull off a trade for Damian Lillard.

Honorable Mention: Colin Castleton

The undrafted 23-year-old made sure everyone knew who he was after appearing in seven games this summer. Colin Castleton, out of Florida, averaged 13.7 points, 9.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.1 blocks per game while playing 26.7 minutes per contest. The Lakers have already signed him to a two-way deal, but he could quickly play his way into backup minutes since the team is still looking for someone to consistently provide value behind Anthony Davis. So far, Castleton has shown he could potentially be that guy.

Summer League Losers

1. Kai Jones, Charlotte Hornets

Kai Jones may have given us the best highlight to come out of summer league. Besides that, there wasn't much to write home about.

This was his third year of action in July and most of his numbers have either decreased or stayed the same since his rookie season in 2021-22. He saw his points, rebounds, assists, blocks, turnovers, and even fouls per game numbers all dip compared to either last year or the year before. That comes with the fact that he saw more minutes this summer than he did last summer.

As a center/power forward, grabbing only 4.8 rebounds per contest is incredibly disappointing. There were a handful of players that averaged around the same or more with fewer minutes. The team still has to decide on picking up his option for a fourth season that's worth $4.7 million. If this summer league performance is a sign of things to come, that means the team probably won't want to spend that money on him.

2. Noah Clowney, Brooklyn Nets

There's still some debate on whether or not Clowney is considered a center and power forward, but in terms of this summer, he was listed as a center. Honestly, I'm not sure which one would benefit his case because he probably had the worst performance out of all the first-round selections from the most recent draft.

The Alabama product made a total of seven shots in 97 minutes. To put that into perspective, he only averaged 1.4 made shots per game in his five appearances. He posted shooting splits of .226, .235, and .750. While the free throw percentage isn't half bad, especially for a center, the other two are quite awful given the nature of the position as well. He actually registered more fouls than made shots, assists, and steals combined. Clowney was actually just four fouls shy of his point total.

Now, we're not here to just pile negative on top of negative for Clowney's summer performance. He did grab 5.4 boards per contest which is higher than Kai Jones' mark. He did also swat a total of seven shots but turned the ball over five times at the same time. Let's just leave this one at yikes.

3. Vernon Carey Jr., Utah Jazz

Carey wasn't necessarily awful during his three games in the Salt Lake City version of summer league but he didn't play well enough to stay with the Jazz. The team decided to waive him shortly after the action in Utah was done and he didn't join another roster for any of the Vegas games.

The 22-year-old is heading into his fourth season and has only appeared in a total of 37 games. During the summer, Carey needed to prove that he belongs but his stat line of 10.3 points and 6.0 rebounds per game was not enough to make him stand out. As a member of the 2020 draft class, Carey should be able to dominate against prospects and second-year players. Instead, he looked overmatched and didn't add much to the dynamic of the team.

From a potential big man, six rebounds across 19 minutes per contest isn't too bad. The biggest issue is that his defense wasn't impactful at all. He only collected one block and two steals with a defensive rating of 105.5 while turning the ball over four times and racking up five fouls in the process. That combined with shooting 55.6% from the free throw line in 59 total minutes of action results in getting waived when you're supposed to be a veteran at this point.

That wraps up this list of winners and losers in terms of the centers that all participated in this year's summer leagues. While it may seem kind of harsh to name prospects as losers, let's just remember this is only in terms of this summer. A lot can change between now, the start of the season, and especially by the end of the season.

Are there any winners or losers that I missed? Let me know on Twitter @__Fisch!

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