Three thoughts on the Utah Jazz’s 93-89 summer league win over the Philadelphia 76ers from Salt Lake Tribune Jazz beat writer Andy Larsen.
1. Ace Bailey shows strengths, and definite weaknesses, in first game
This game was on ESPN for two reasons: VJ Edgecombe and Ace Bailey.
The No. 3 and No. 5 picks in the NBA Draft last month drew the spotlight for every viewer of this game, but in the end, it was Edgecombe who popped more. That’s not to say Bailey was a disappointment — but there were larger elements of the game in which he struggled.
Let’s start with the good: There were flashes of moments in which Bailey used his athleticism to tremendous effect. There are not very many players on the Jazz who can make these kinds of blocks.
The effort Bailey put into doing the same on rebounding was great to see, too.
And then there were definite struggles. Bailey finished 3-13 from the floor thanks to some iffy shooting choices — the kind he made in college as well. As Bailey entered the interview room on Saturday, he looked at the box score and seemed to grimace; I’d bet it was about that shooting line.
In general, Bailey just struggles to get all the way to the rim if there’s a body defending him, creating friction on the drive. He will either need to find a way to create space for himself while he drives (by getting stronger, driving lower, and so on), or get much better at drawing illegal contact to get to the free throw line.
I wonder if the Jazz won’t have to get most of his baskets in the NBA in his rookie season from off-ball play. For the most part, Bailey’s used to having the ball in his hands and going to work, but doing that in the league will accentuate his weak-for-now handle. Instead, Bailey’s most fluid scoring moment came off a midrange screen.
Check the 1:00 mark of the video below (and no, I don’t know why the broadcast of today’s game was in 1992 video quality):
Overall, he finished with eight points, seven rebounds, and ones in the assists, steals, and blocks categories in 25 minutes.
From all off-court respects, though, it was an encouraging debut. Some national voices worried that Bailey wouldn’t be welcomed to Utah — the crowd nearly gave him a standing ovation when he came out for warmups. Every basket of his was celebrated more loudly than the other moments of the night.
“They made me a little nervous,” Bailey said of the crowd’s reaction. “It was fun though. Just coming in an arena I’ve never played in and just feeling love from the fans, it was just a blessing.”
2. VJ Edgecombe’s big night
But we’d be remiss if we didn’t dig more into the debut of Edgecombe’s night, even though he’s a Sixer. In short, Edgecombe looked the part of a future star in the NBA, a 28-point, 10-rebound, four-assist, two-block performance in which he played point guard and looked good doing it.
Like with Bailey, the strongest aspect of Edgecombe’s play was his athleticism. In transition, Edgecombe simply moved at a different level than his counterparts.
Edgecombe was better at getting downhill in the half-court than Bailey was, though. Perhaps it was that he had the ball in his hands more, but Edgecombe got his defenders off balance to find himself in the paint. Once he was there, he used his vertical athleticism to hang in the air and finish over length. (See the clips at 3:20 below).
He also impacted the game defensively. I thought Edgecombe looked bigger in person than in his college tape.
All in all, it kind of reminded me of Donovan Mitchell’s initial summer league. Just like this one, Mitchell’s first summer league in Utah was played at the Huntsman Center thanks to renovations at the Delta Center. And just like Mitchell did, Edgecombe dazzled the crowd with his athleticism and creativity. I think there are some similarities there, though ultimately I expect Edgecombe to be a better defender and a weaker offensive player than Mitchell.
3. Jazz’s “veterans” and what they’re working on
OK, they’re not much of veterans: the players named here are either 20 or 21 years old. But this is a big summer league for Cody Williams, Isaiah Collier, Kyle Filipowski, and Brice Sensabaugh — and it was ultimately their solid play that pushed the Jazz to a win Saturday night over the Sixers.
So what should you watch for in their play for the rest of summer league?
Cody Williams
For Williams, it’s clear: the goal is aggression. Williams was extremely passive in his rookie season, sporting just a 12.5% usage rate. He made a statement of intent to begin this one, taking the game’s first offensive possession (missing a three). Ultimately, though, he took 12 shots on Saturday night — more than he did in any of the 82 last season.
“He’s got to be aggressive, and we got to live with some mistakes offensively, because it’s only way it’s going to get better,” Jazz summer league head coach Scott Morrison said.
Isaiah Collier
We all know that Collier has to improve his shot, and it was once again weak on Saturday; Collier shot just 1-7. But while that comes along, and it will need to for Collier to stick as anything beyond an emergency point guard, Collier can improve his efficiency by getting downhill in the paint more often — and then being smart once he’s there.
“He relies on his teammates to be spaced at the right time, so that when he does attack and draw some help, he has outlets,” Morrison said. “I think he gets in trouble a little bit when he leaves his feet or goes all or nothing trying to draw a foul.”
Kyle Filipowski
Kyle Filipowski is already a talented enough big man offensively to earn major minutes in the NBA. The shooting, the finishing around the rim, and the passing are all awesome. He scored 22 points on 8-11 shooting, and his second-half scoring was a major factor in the Jazz staying ahead.
And yet: The interior defense is a concern. While Filipowski was trying to be aggressive, he bit on every fake Sixers big man Adem Bona gave, and got bested at the rim multiple times. And yes, Filipowski is working on that.
“Last couple months, just in general, been in the weight room a lot, been working on defense a lot,” Filipowski said. “I think it’s just being more physically capable of handling the physicality in the game.”
Brice Sensabaugh
Sensabaugh is only anticipated to play the Salt Lake City portion of summer league, he’ll likely skip Las Vegas. These three games are the chance to show that he’s graduated from this level.
The good news is that the shooting is there: Sensabaugh made five of eight 3-point shots. It’s already the fundamental tenet of his game.
The downside is the turnovers: he had five in this game. The most likely outcome for Sensabaugh to help an NBA team is as a shooter, but teams don’t tolerate high turnover counts from those guys. Sensabaugh’s been asked to make more “0.5 second decisions,” i.e., to move off the ball when he doesn’t have the advantage. Morrison said that he “didn’t think he stuck the ball that much” tonight — but right now, he’s struggling to make the quick read correctly.