Second-year players took over Day 3 at Summer League
Everybody always tunes in to Summer League in order to watch some of the top rookies from the NBA Draft, but the guys that often get overlooked are the second-year players who were drafted the year before. On Day 2, Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley headlined the second-year talent on display and on Day 3 on Tuesday, plenty of second-year guys continued to make a name for themselves, starting with Payton Pritchard and Aaron Nesmith for the Boston Celtics.
Pritchard and Nesmith were both first-round picks of the Celtics last year and both guys had remarkable games against the Denver Nuggets Tuesday afternoon. Starting with Pritchard, he went for 21 points on 6-10 shooting, 4-5 3PT, and flirted with a near triple-double, tallying 8 rebounds and 12 assists.
Denver could not seem to get the ball out of Pritchard’s hands in this game and the second-year guard had the “Midas touch” during Day 3 because the ball turned to gold every time he touched it!
Whether it was running off of down-screens to get an open look at a three-pointer or driving down the lane and kicking it out to a wide-open teammate in the corner, Payton Pritchard was fantastic in terms of overall playmaking.
READ MORE: 2021 NBA Summer League Day 2 Review & Headlines
His teammate Aaron Nesmith also had a fantastic showing on Tuesday, scoring 33 points on 7-9 shooting from three and he grabbed 7 rebounds as well. With Evan Fournier gone and the Celtics having question marks on the wing, Nesmith could be gearing up to see a major uptick in minutes during the 2021-22 season, especially after his performance on Day 3.
Not only did he look very comfortable moving around on the three-point line, but he looked a lot more comfortable than Romeo Langford, another young guard/wing that the Celtics are looking to get something out of. Nesmith was the best player on the court in my opinion during this game and if he continues to shoot like he did against the Nuggets, he will give Boston’s bench a much-needed boost, especially since they ranked 28th in the league last season in scoring.
Finally, you can’t talk about second-year guys making an impact on Day 3 of Las Vegas Summer League without mentioning Patrick Williams from the Chicago Bulls. After scoring 15 points and grabbing 12 rebounds on Day 2, Williams came out on fire against the Spurs on Tuesday, scoring 30 points on 10-23 shooting, 4-7 shooting from deep.
READ MORE: 2021 NBA Summer League Day 2 Review & Headlines
Seeing Williams knock down three-pointers against the Spurs is definitely a delightful site for Bulls fans and with the likes of Lonzo Ball and DeMar DeRozan coming to town, Patrick Williams could be in store to see a lot of three-point opportunities on the wing and in the corner over the course of the 2021-22 season.
The main takeaway from Patrick Wiliams’ performance is that he is being aggressive and looking to score every chance he gets, something he did not necessarily do a whole lot of during the 2020-21 season. Entering the league, Williams was known for being a really strong perimeter defender, but if he can continue to grow as a scorer, he could turn into one of the more important two-way players in the league for his team.
