By R.L. Bynum
Caleb Wilson was impressive from the start in his first game in 150 days, setting a record for points in an NBA Summer League debut with a 35-point show while equaling his 3-point output in all of his only season at Carolina.
Although his Chicago Bulls lost to the Memphis Grizzlies 97–96 on Friday in Las Vegas, the No. 4 pick outplayed former Duke star Cameron Boozer, the No. 3 pick, who had 23 points and six rebounds.
“We lost,” Wilson said. “That’s my goal, to come here and win. So, of course it’s cool. Somebody is going to break [the record] one day, like they always do. I’m happy that I got the record, and I’m ready to move on to what’s next. We got another game coming up soon.”
Wilson said he cried before the game reflecting about what happened to his Carolina team and Coach Hubert Davis after he got injured.
“It’s been five months to the day since the last time I played,” he said. “I’ve just been really emotional because I haven’t been able to play. I felt terrible because my team lost in the tournament and my coach got fired. It was just a lot for me at that point. So, coming out today, it felt like I’ve waiting so long for this opportunity.”
He was off and running after his first shot as a professional player slithered through the net for a 3-pointer. In the second period, Javon Small was driving for a layup attempt when Wilson blocked it from behind. In the third period, he went on a personal 8–0 run.
Wilson, who scored 21 second-half points, was 12-of-21 from the floor and made 7 of 11 3-point attempts for the game, including a long-distance 3-pointer at the final buzzer.
That 3-point total matched his total for last season at Carolina, when he never made more than one 3-pointer in any game and was 7-of-27.
“No, it wasn’t in the flow of our offense, and college is a much different game than the NBA,” Wilson said of the lack of 3-pointers at Carolina. “My coaches didn’t tell me not to shoot threes. I was really good at what I did in college, which is being an athlete and creating opportunities for others. So, I just did what was needed for me to be done for us to be a successful team.”
Wilson easily topped the performances of the other three top-four draft picks in their Summer League debuts. No. 1 pick AJ Dybantsa had 27 points and seven assists while No. 2 pick Darryn Peterson had 24 points and three assists.
If you missed Wilson’s debut because it was on Prime Video, you should be able to watch his second game. Tuesday’s Bulls game against the Utah Jazz at 9 p.m. will air on ESPN.
Pete Nance started in his Summer League debut for the Milwaukee Bucks after signing a two-way contract on Thursday. He scored 16 points and four 3-pointers while contributing seven rebounds and two blocks in their 119–86 loss to the Miami Heat.
Cormac Ryan came off the bench to contribute seven points and eight rebounds but was a team-low -28.
Drake Powell’s shooting struggles continued in his Brooklyn Nets’ 91–65 blowout of the New York Knicks. He missed all seven shots (three from 3-point range) and scored one point. Through four games, Powell is 1-of-34 from the floor, has missed all 15 3-point attempts and has scored eight points.
In games involving Tar Heels on Saturday, RJ Davis’ San Antonio Spurs face the Sacramento Kings at 6 p.m., with Powell’s Nets taking on Henri Veesaar’s Atlanta Hawks at 8 p.m. Both games air on ESPN.
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Summer League Tar Heels
Friday, July 3, result
— Heat 88, Spurs 87 | RJ Davis: didn’t start, 18:20, 15 points, 4–8 FG, 3–5 3FG, 2–3 FT, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 foul, team-high +16
Saturday, July 4, results
— Bucks 97, Warriors Blue 83 | Cormac Ryan: started, 18:39, 13 points, 3–8 FG, 3–6 3FG, 3–3 FT, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, +5 | Pete Nance: didn’t play (coach’s decision)
— Jazz 103, Hawks 102, OT | Henri Veesaar: didn’t start, 18:12, 5 points, 2–4 FG, 1–3 3FG, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 fouls, -13
— Kings 79, Nets 76 | Drake Powell: started: 27:01, 4 points, 0–9 FG, 0–5 3FG, 2–3 FT, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 2 fouls, -5
Sunday, July 5, results
— Nets 89, Bucks 69 | Neither Drake Powell, Cormac Ryan nor Pete Nance active for game
— Warriors Gold team 98, Spurs 69 | RJ Davis: didn’t start, 21:20, 2 points, 1–9 FG, 0–5 3FG, 1–1 FT, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 2 fouls, team-low -22
Monday, July 6, results
— Hawks 82, Thunder 77 | Henri Veesaar: didn’t start, 16:48, 2 points, 1–4 FG, 0–1 3FG, 7 rebounds, team-low -11
— Lakers 88, Spurs 84 | RJ Davis: started, 29:25, 18 points, 7–16 FG, 2–7 3FG, 2–4 FT, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, team-high +10
— Nets 100, Warriors Gold team 79 | Drake Powell: started, 23:20, 2 points, 1–8 FG, 0–4 3FG, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 3 fouls, +20
— Kings 95, Bucks 89 | Cormac Ryan: not active for game
Tuesday’s result
— Hawks 92, Grizzlies 82 | Henri Veesaar: Started, 23:32, 11 points, 4–9 FG, 2–5 3FG, 1–2 FT, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block 4 turnovers, 5 fouls, +5
All games below are in Las Vegas
Thursday’s results
— Hawks 93, Spurs 66:
* Henri Veesaar (Hawks): didn’t start, 19:00, 14 points, 5–8 FG, 2–5 3FG, 1–2 FT, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, +17; Summer League totals: 8.0 points, 48 FG%, 45.7 3P%, 2–4 FT, 5.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 2 blocks
* RJ Davis (Spurs): started; 24:42, 12 points, 5–10 FG, 0–3 3FG, 2–3 FT, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, team-low -20; Summer League totals: 11.8 points, 40.5 FG%, 25 3P%, 54.5 FT%, 2.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 3 steals, 1 block
— Wizards 92, Jazz 88 | Seth Trimble: didn’t start; 11:45, 2 points, 1–2 FG, 0–1 3FG, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 foul, +6
Friday‘s games
— Heat 119, Bucks 86:
* Pete Nance: started, 26;15, 16 points, 6–10 FG, 4–8 3FG, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, -14 (first game of the summer)
* Cormac Ryan: didn’t start, 22:07, 7 points, 2–7 FG, 1–4 3FG, 1–1 FT, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 4 turnovers, 3 fouls, team-low -28 | Summer League totals: 4 games, 27 points, 7–22 FG, 4–14 3FG, 5–6 FT, 16 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 blocks
— Nets 91, Knicks 65 | Drake Powell: started; 20:55, 1 point, 0–7 FG, 0–3 3FG, 1–1 FT, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 fouls, +7 |
— Grizzlies 97, Bulls 96 | Caleb Wilson: started, 32:56, 35 points,12–21 FG, 7–11 3FG, 2–6 FT, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 6 turnovers, 2 fouls, -11
Saturday‘s results
— Spurs 70, Knicks 49 | RJ Davis: didn’t start, 18:16, 5 points, 2–9 FG, 1–5 3FG, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 3 turnovers, 1 foul, +4
— Hawks 83, Nets 76:
* Henri Veesaar: didn’t start, 16:52, 6 points, 3–5 FG, 0–1 3FG, 0–1 FT, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, +15 | Veesaar Summer League totals: 5 games, 38 points, 15–30 FG, 5–10 3FG, 2–5 FT, 17 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 blocks
* Drake Powell: started, 4 points, 0–4 FG, 0–2 3FG, 2–2 FT, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 turnover, +1 | Powell Summer League totals: 5 games, 12 points, 1–38 FG, 0–17 3FG, 6–7 FT, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals
Sunday‘s games
— Wizards (Trimble) vs. Kings, 8 p.m. (Prime Video)
— Spurs (Davis) vs. Bucks (Ryan), 9 p.m. (ESPN)
Monday‘s games
— Hawks (Veesaar) vs. Celtics, 6 p.m. (Prime Video)
— Bulls (Wilson) vs. Jazz, 9 p.m. (ESPN)
— Bucks (Ryan) vs. Suns, 10 p.m. (Prime Video)
Tuesday, July 14
— Nets (Powell) vs. Kings, 6 p.m. (Prime Video)
— Wizards (Trimble) vs. Bulls (Wilson), 8 p.m. (Prime Video)
Wednesday, July 15
— Bucks (Ryan) vs. Hornets, 7:30 p.m. (Prime Video)
— Spurs (Davis) vs. Jazz, 9:30 p.m. (Prime Video)
— Wizards (Trimble) vs. Clippers, 10:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Thursday, July 16
— Nets (Powell) vs. Rockets, 4:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
— Bulls (Wilson) vs. Lakers, 6 p.m. (Prime Video)
— Hawks (Veesaar) vs. Grizzlies, 8 p.m. (Prime Video)
The Las Vegas schedule reflects each team’s first four Summer League games there, which count toward tournament seeding. The top four teams advance to the semifinals July 18, with the championship game July 19. TV assignments for several later-round games were still to be determined.
Note that an experimental one-free-throw rule is in place. One, two and three free-throw sequences produce a single attempt worth the same total points, except for the final two minutes of the fourth quarter and all overtime periods when standard free‑throw rules apply.
Photo via @chicagobulls
