10 European league players to watch in Las Vegas Summer League

Las Vegas Summer League kicks off today. The annual event in Vegas got a little bigger this year, as the dissolution of the Orlando Summer League meant for the first time, all 30 teams will be convening in Vegas with a team full of rookies and fringe roster players. For the players, it’s a chance to showcase yourself to earn an NBA, G League or European league contract, or hone specific skills in a real game setting. For fans, it’s more of a spectacle — see some young stars, hang out in Las Vegas and wear your best obscure NBA jersey. There’s an annual underground ping-pong tournament. It’s a silly time for a silly league in America’s silliest city.

Most of the players you’ll be watching over the next two weeks are on the fringe of the NBA. Most are coming straight out of college or the G League, and are fighting for places on two-way contracts or in the NBA’s developmental league. But some come from Europe, as well. As the NBA has put more of a focus on European players in recent years, Summer League can be a great place for those playing across the globe to try to get noticed. Joe Ingles doesn’t make the NBA without first joining the Golden State Warriors’ Summer League team in 2011. Same with Daniel Theis, who the Celtics first got a glimpse of in 2015 Summer League with the Wizards.

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This year will be no different. Almost every team has at least one player who spent 2017-18 playing internationally, and several of them are players who could get into the NBA with the right performance. Most of these players are in that age 24-26 sweet spot, having already spent a few years in Europe and the G League, and could be ready to plug in right on an NBA roster, like Royce O’Neale this past year with the Jazz. There are obviously no guarantees, but at least one of these players is a good bet to get NBA minutes next season. As we head into LVSL, here are the ten European veterans who might have the best shot at the big time.

Pierria Henry, PG, Tofas Bursa (Boston Celtics)

Henry was one of the best point guards in the Turkish League last year, and he joins what is always an eclectic, interesting Celtics Summer League team assembled by Danny Ainge. Henry is a prolific passer, averaging 7.8 assists per 40 minutes last season, and hit 40.4 percent from 3 as well. He has solid size at 6-foot-5, and is incredibly creative with the ball. The former Charlotte guard has a good shot at a Euroleague spot with a good performance, and he might be one of the best cheap backup 1s on the market. He doesn’t have the best frame, but don’t be surprised if he finds his way onto an NBA roster eventually thanks to his ball movement and shooting skills.

Reggie Upshaw, PF, Walter Tigers (Los Angeles Clippers)

Upshaw disappointed in his inaugural summer league with the Milwaukee Bucks last year, but should fare better this time around after a productive year in Germany with Walter Tigers Tubingen. Upshaw is a 6-foot-8 power forward who is a very strong rebounder that can pick-and-pop, and he was excellent at both last year, averaging 14.4 points per game with 39.1 percent shooting from outside, and 6.6 rebounds per game to boot. The former Middle Tennessee State big man is a very smart positional defender as well, and he’ll likely have a more featured role on this Clippers team loaded with strong guard play but lacking in shooting bigs.

Amida Brimah, C, Partizan (San Antonio Spurs)

Brimah, a former UConn center, has already gotten some significant run for the Spurs during the Utah Summer League, and will likely get some quality minutes in Vegas as well. He represents one of the best players you can unearth in Summer League — a cheap, effective rim protector — and has excelled there, averaging 2.5 blocks per game so far without loading up on fouls. That’s in line with his performance at Partizan, where he tried to anchor a young run-and-gun team that was lacking in defensive skill, and actually held his own in that regard. Brimah’s huge, and his mobility is a significant question mark for his NBA future, but if anyone can figure out how to showcase him despite his shortcomings, it’s the Spurs staff.

Kendrick Ray, PG, CEZ Nymburk (Utah Jazz)

Kendrick Ray is insanely fun. The Kennesaw State guard has looked strong for Utah already, and he was a very strong player for CEZ Nymburk of the Czech league, averaging 15.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game in FIBA Champions League play. He has excellent body control around the rim, a smooth shooting stroke off the catch and he plays with the confidence typical of a strong small-school scoring guard, which makes him highly entertaining. He’s a little small, which might limit his NBA capabilities, but at 24-years old, this is his first shot at the NBA, and he’s looking to make the most of it. He helps make the Jazz a much-watch squad.

Oleksandr Kobets, SG, Cherkasy (Chicago Bulls)

The Bulls have an interesting international pick in Kobets. He’s a 22-year old Ukrainian prospect who broke out last year by averaging 14.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per game for the surprise Ukrainian Superleague champions. The best exposure he had to date came when he was a dominant player at the 2016 U-20 championships for Ukraine, operating as option 1B next to Svi Mykhailiuk. His combination of size and finishing ability is exciting, but this is a very different level from the Ukrainian League. If he shows he can step up to the challenge, he might get that bump up to the Euroleague or Eurocup level, and set himself up for a future NBA deal. But at this point, we don’t really know enough about him yet.

Mitch Creek, SF, Adelaide 36ers (Dallas Mavericks)

Creek is an Australian getting his second shot at summer league, having parlayed a strong showing in limited minutes with the Jazz into a brief stint in Germany to go along with his Australian league tenure. If anyone is ready to make the Joe Ingles transition on this list, it’s his fellow Aussie, who is a phenomenal rebounder and smart two-way player who consistently plays well in national competitions. He’ll fit in nicely with this Mavericks squad, who even without Luka Doncic will have an incredibly strong squad with Dennis Smith Jr., Dorian Finney-Smith, Jake Wiley and Jalen Brunson, among others. It’s a great environment for Creek to show off his ability to fit as a role player and potentially land an NBA deal.

Chasson Randle, SG, Real Madrid (New Orleans Pelicans)

Randle is an NBA veteran, having spent time with the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks in the past, and he’ll be trying to work back into the fold after a year of growth at Real Madrid. Randle struggled early on in the season, but as injuries ground down the Madrid roster for much of the year, Randle played well in spot minutes, shooting 45 percent from 3 in Euroleague play. The Knicks had Randle try to operate as a ball-handler for much of his first NBA year, but in Spain he showed strengths as an off-ball weapon, and that could be his ticket back. How he does playing off strong ball-handlers like Tony Carr and Trevon Blueitt on the Pelicans squad will be interesting to see.

Rion Brown, SF, Dijon (Golden State Warriors)

Rion Brown is the best player even many Europhiles haven’t heard of. The former Miami guard has spent three years in the backwaters of Europe, first in Belgium and Finland and this past season in France with Dijon. He’s a fantastic athlete, able to convert at a high rate at the rim, and he’s shot 40.7 percent from 3 on 507 attempts over the past two seasons. He’s ready for his moment, and he will get it on the Warriors Summer League team. He at the very least should be able to continue rising up the ranks in Europe, if he doesn’t find a way into the NBA on a two-way contract.

Quincy Miller, PF, Bamberg (Houston Rockets)

Here’s a name you probably haven’t heard in years. Miller is a three-year NBA veteran, having last played with the Pistons in 2014-15. He then went to Crvena Zvezda in Serbia and was an All-Euroleague player in 2015-16, but any chance at an NBA comeback for him was shot when he tore his PCL in a workout. He’s been a nomad for the past two years, and will try to right the ship on his career by joining the Rockets in Vegas. He played mostly as a small forward in his first NBA tenure, but this trip should be interesting to see how he handles playing as a 4 or small-ball 5, which is where he was most successful in Euroleague. He’s a very talented player, but he also hasn’t played high-level basketball in a year.

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Isaiah Briscoe, PG, Kalev-Cramo (Orlando Magic)

Finally, there’s Isaiah Briscoe, who just signed a contract with Orlando as of this writing. Briscoe was always somewhat disappointing as a Kentucky player, to the point that he went undrafted. But a year with Estonian club Kalev-Cramo helped rehab his image, as his shooting progressed to the point where he hit 39 percent from 3 on 118 attempts. Briscoe has always had the frame of an NBA point guard, but his skill progression hasn’t been there. If he plays well with the Magic’s summer league team, it could be that he was just a late-bloomer, and the promise of the former 13th-ranked high school recruit could start finally showing.