NBA Summer League Las Vegas

NBA Summer League Tournament Shines Light on Top Draft Picks

Every summer, as the desert heat notches up, so does the NBA competition at the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, at the Thomas & Mack Center and Cox Pavilion.

Summer League basketball has been an NBA tradition for many decades, however, the games have been spread around various locations including Las Vegas, Orlando, Utah, and most recently – Sacramento.

This year, the buzz that helped usher in the summer league action in Las Vegas has been fueled by generational talent, Victor Wembanyama, drafted first-overall by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2023 NBA Draft.

Perhaps it’s shades of LeBron James, but as the most highly-touted prospect since King James, fans are turning out for the summer league. Both his inaugural summer league games were sold out – 17,500 fans wanted to claim dibs on seeing the prodigy play paying more than $45 and over $96 on the secondary market. By comparison, LeBron James had to have his first game in a summer league moved from a high school gym to the now defunct Orland Arena. The more than 13,000 fans that turned out to see King James shelled out $5!

In his first two games, Wembanyama poured 36 points along with 20 rebounds, and eight blocked shots. The team then announced that they would be shutting him down for the remainder of the summer league tournament. So, if you’re interested in catching a glimpse of the superstar, you’ll have to keep your eyes on the San Antonio NBA season schedule and tickets.

NBA Summer League 2K24 Tournament Format

All 30 of the NBA franchises are participating in the NBA 2K24 Summer League happening most of July in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The format of these games is typically a little different. For example, most games last 40 minutes across four, 10-minute periods(compared to the 48 minutes of a regular-season NBA contest), foul allowances, and a modified overtime period.

In all, 76 games will be played with each team guaranteed to participate in at least five games. After a team has played in four contests, the top four teams will advance to a playoff including a semi-final game (July 16, 2023), two semi-final game winners will proceed to a championship game (July 17, 2023). Overall, winning percentage dictates the top four teams that will move onto the playoff.

All is not lost for those that do not make the playoff – a consolation game will be played for the remaining 26 clubs on July 15 or July 16.

A Look At The Past MVPs of the Las Vegas Summer League

Here is a look at the last decade of Las Vegas Summer League MVPs. The list displays a number of the league’s top players and shows recent dominance by up-and-coming squads like the Sacramento Grizzlies and recent success with the stacked Los Angeles Lakers.

Year	Player	Team
2022	Keegan Muray	Sacramento Kings
2021	Davion Mitchell (co-MVP), Cameron Thomas (co-MVP)	Sacramento Kings, Brooklyn Nets
2020	No Tournament	No Tournament
2019	Brandon Clarke	Memphis Grizzlies
2018	Josh Hart	Los Angeles Lakers
2017	Lonzo Ball	Los Angeles Lakers
2016	Tyus Jones	Minnesota Timberwolves
2015	Kyle Anderson	San Antonio Spurs
2014	Glen Rice Jr.	Washington Wizards
2013	Jonas Valančiūnas	Toronto Raptors
2012	Damien Lillard (co-MVP), Josh Selby (co-MVP)	Portland Trail Blazers, Memphis Grizzlies

What Players Are We Excited to Watch in the NBA 2K24 Summer League Tournament?

The NBA Summer League has traditionally been a time for players to emerge and top draft picks to give fans a taste of what’s to come. It’s also a time for undrafted players to shine. Harvard product, Jeremy Lin was initially invited to the Dallas Mavericks summer league team even though he went undrafted. His solid performance that year netted him a contract with the Golden State Warriors.

Here are four players we’re excited to get tickets for during the NBA 2K24 Summer League Tournament.

We already mentioned the phenom, Victor Wembanyama, but the Spurs have put the brakes on him appearing in any more summer league games.

Brandon Miller

Charlotte Hornets

Setting into his summer league debut in Vegas after performances in Sacramento, Miller, the No. 2 pick to Charlotte finished with a double-double in his debut, finishing with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Fans in Charlotte are excited and a bit anxious to see if the franchise can right the wrongs of former first-round picks and help turn to winning ways. They also look forward to seeing bits of the flash and beautiful scoring and above-the-rim play that Miller became known for during his time playing for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Here are the games you can likely find Brandon Miller in:

• July 11, 2023 Portland vs. Charlotte, 8:30 p.m.
• July 13, 2023 Charlotte vs. New Orleans, 7:30 p.m.
• July 15, 2023: TBD
• July 16, 2023: TBD
• July 17, 2023: TBD

Chet Holmgren

Oklahoma City Thunder

Despite missing all of last year with a right foot injury, the No. 2 pick in the 2022 draft is off to a hot start in summer league action. The seven-footer played some tune-up games in the Salt Lake City Summer League and contributed a double-double (16 points, 10 rebounds) in a win over the Dallas Mavericks in his 2K24 opener. Spicing things up a bit this summer league go-round is the addition of No. 10 pick, Cason Wallace, a guard out of the Kentucky Wildcats who poured in six three-pointers against the Dallas Mavericks, who were also the team that drafted his rights and traded them to OKC.

Here are the games you can likely find Chet Holmgren in:

• July 12, 2023: Oklahoma City vs. Indiana, 7:30 p.m.
• July 14, 2023: Oklahoma City vs. Washington, 5 p.m.
• July 15, 2023: TBD
• July 16, 2023: TBD
• July 17, 2023: TBD

Scoot Henderson

Portland Trail Blazers

After spending two years in the NBA’s developmental G League, No. 3 overall pick, Scoot Henderson has proven to the Trail Blazers brass that he understands the minutiae, rules, and spacing that define the NBA game. In his debut summer league title, Henderson finished with 15 points in the first half before he sat out with a shoulder injury. Throughout the game, he was solid defensively and appeared poised and confident.

Here are the games you can likely find Scoot Henderson in:

• July 11, 2023: Portland vs. Charlotte, 8:30 p.m., NBA TV
• July 13, 2023: Portland vs. Orlando, 9 p.m., ESPN2
• July 15, 2023: TBD
• July 16, 2023: TBD
• July 17, 2023: TBD

Amen Thompson

Houston Rockets

The No. 4 pick has shown that he is one of the best on-ball defenders in all of this year’s rookie class and was disruptive in his initial defensive matchups by jumping screens, blocking shots, and preventing opponents from turning the corner to get open looks. In his debut, he finished with 16 points, five assists, and four blocks. He has given Rockets fans a lot to look forward to with his balanced offensive and defensive abilities but an injury may hinder his chance at more playing time in summer league action.

Here are the games you can likely find Amen Thompson in:

• July 11, 2023: Houston vs. Oklahoma City, 6:30 p.m., NBA TV
• July 13, 2023: Houston vs. Golden State, 7 p.m., ESPN
• July 15, 2023: TBD
• July 16, 2023: TBD
• July 17, 2023: TBD

For these players and teams and all your favorites, be sure to keep an eye on our ticket pages for your front-row seat to the best NBA Summer League 2K24 action.