Thomas Hamilton on All-SPL Team out of Long Beach

[LakerMania]

Wrapping up the Summer Pro League at Long Beach
by Jon Finkel / July 24, 2002

Yao Ming sucks and Juwanna Mann will make 12 millions dollars. Check that. Yao Ming will make 12 million dollars and Juwanna Mann sucked - and did not make 12 million dollars. The draft is done, the summer movies are out and the initial jury is in. Like an opening weekend, the Southern California Summer Pro League is the first chance many NBA teams get to see if they guessed right about their draft day investments. Unlike an opening weekend, the investments are people and they have a chance to improve, even if they don’t impress right away.

I was Nate Dogg these past two weeks, regulating the talent, hittin’ the east side of the LBC on a mission watchin’ ballers in the Summer Pro League.

I was Snoop, with so much ballin’ in the LBC, it’s kind of hard writin’ for Hoops - h - y - p - e. May, I, write a little somethin’ for the fans and... alright, enough. I just needed something to occupy my mind while sitting in L.A. traffic going to the games, and the excellent wordplay and parodying of some West Coast rappers was the end result of my killing time. So, I promise, no more from Warren G, the twins, Snoop, Nate or anybody. From now on, just Caron, Drew, Kareem and friends. So here is what went down.

Miami Heat (3-0)

The Heat didn’t show up until the second week and 10th pick Caron Butler didn’t really show up until the third game. As far as Butler goes, he was hurt and played his first hoop in three weeks at the Summer Pro League and it took a few games for him to get his legs. In the third game, he dropped over 20 points and was passing and making plays like everyone expected that he would. Another Butler, Rasual, was also demanding attention, scoring double digits in about 30 minutes of play per game. Malik Allen was the most consistent player on the team, scoring 20 points and pulling down 8 boards a game. As far as the hype surrounding Tony Gonzalez, he didn’t play in any games in Long Beach. The only other notable, Luke Recker, had a tough time finding his shot, but was just a little off. Coach Pat Riley was in town for the games and seemed to be completely ambivalent as to how his team was playing.

Phoenix Suns (4-2)

The Suns had the second most stacked team in the Summer League. Heading the list of prospects was Amare Stoudemire. Let me say this. Stoudemire was by far the most impressive athlete in the League. He really doesn’t know how to play ball yet, often looking confused. That said, he beats everyone down the floor every time, can shoot, pass, dribble, play inside and play tough defense. He’s got quick hands and even quicker hops that allow him to jump out of nowhere for impressive swats. He might not get the hype because he’s in Phoenix, but with the right coaching, he could be the NBA prototype player of the future. The Suns also had their other draft pick, Casey Jacobsen out there. Jacobsen is a great spot shooter and is fundamentally sound. He went for about 17 a game and scored in spurts. Joe Johnson is going to make the Celtics pay for giving up on him so early. He scored consistently in most of the games, easily reaching 20 points and boards while only averaging about 30 minutes of playing time per. Alton Ford and Milt Palacio were able to score as well, each averaging in the teens per game.

Los Angeles Lakers (4-3)

The Lakers really didn’t bring much to the tournament in the way of talent other than Kareem Rush. Mark Madsen was there as a fan favorite, but he got most of his points and boards by out-hustling the other players, not out-talenting them (yes, I made out-talenting up). As for Rush, he can shoot. The Lakers basically stole him and teams in the West are going to be upset that they let it happen. Remember, if he left college last year, he would have been a top five pick. Anyway, his shot is smooth and he scored 23 and 20 in the two games he played before he got injured. Maurice Carter was really the only other standout and he dropped 18 a game. It’s hard to imagine any invisible men with names like Jannero Pargo and Jamario Moon making the cut on the defending World Champs roster.

Los Angeles Clippers (3-2)

Corey Maggette showed up for two games and blew everyone away with scoring performances of 26 and 35 points. Quentin Richardson played in two games, mainly as a draw, letting everyone else on the team do the work. He had fun and scored a few buckets along the way. The Clippers first-rounders, Chris Wilcox and Melvin Ely, did not play, supposedly in an effort to keep them from playing poorly and losing any trade value they have. Unfortunately, most of the other guys on this roster actually have a shot at being the 9th thru 12th men on the Clips. Tremaine Fowlkes had some big scoring games and seemed to be the most consistent man on the floor, going for 33 points in one game. Ndongo Ndiaye is tall, Kenny Dye is another guy on the roster. Mike Batiste scored in double digits most of the games and seemed to be contributing at his best off the bench. I really haven’t heard of any of the other guys who played and we won't probably hear much about them in the future. Gotta love Clippers ball.

Houston Rockets (3-4)

The lone contributor from the Rockets NBA squad who made the trip to Long Beach was Eddie Griffin. Griffin was playing above the level of his teammates and most players in the League. He scored 20 a game and got rebounds whenever he wanted to. The big surprise was point guard Tierre Brown. The man could just create. It’s hard to tell how good some guys are because of the fairly low talent level, but Brown had no trouble scoring against the other guards there and was unstoppable when he drove. Terence Morris, the Maryland standout for several years, was unimpressive and seemed soft getting his shot off. Jason Collier is seven feet tall. That’s the best thing about him. The second best thing is that he hustles. Tito Maddox from Fresno State is a true athlete and could be a spark off the bench one day. Dane Fife from Indiana may not get enough time on the floor to prove himself.

Dallas Mavericks (2-3)

Dallas brought a guy named Thomas Hamilton to the tournament who was listed at 7-3 and 350 pounds. I think that line is inaccurate. He may have been 400 pounds. If Mark Cuban keeps him on the roster it will be so that he can invite eccentric billionaire friends over to his mansion so they can place thousand dollar bets on Hamilton v. Shawn Bradley wrestling matches. Honestly, there really wasn’t much NBA talent on the Mavs roster. Thomas Hill, owner of the ‘put your hands behind your head and cry like a woman award’ after winning the National Title with Duke was there. That’s about it. He didn’t have much of an impact other than for people in the stands to point and ask, “Isn’t that the guy from Duke who cried like a girl when they won?” Jaren Jackson was the leading scorer with 16 points a game. Andy Ellis from Texas Tech had a few big scoring days. John Celestand, the Villanova alum, had a few twenty point games as well.

Golden State Warriors (2-4)

It is inexplicable why the Warriors did not win every game. They pretty much had their whole roster in Long Beach. Point guard, Gilbert Arenas, clearly was not playing his A game and was forcing passes to get the younger guys involved. The star of the team, Slam Dunk Champ Jason Richardson, was mainly concerning himself with teaching the rookies the Warriors’ offense. Along with some spectacular dunks, Richardson, who could have scored at will, averaged about 24 a game. Troy Murphy’s shot was on throughout most of the tournament and had games of 28,29 and 30 points along with 8 or 9 boards every time out.

Wang Zhizhi, from the Mavericks last year, can shoot the three, but is soft inside and needs to work on his strength in the paint. As far as draft picks, Mike Dunleavy didn’t play exceptionally well, but displayed the versatility he was drafted for, making some nice passes and scoring 16 a game. The other forward they drafted, Jiri Welsch, couldn’t get into a groove and seems to be a year away from cracking this tough, starting line-up. He can score, though, and should contribute. The Warriors also drafted Cincinnati point guard Steve Logan. While Logan can shoot, he is not close to the 6 foot 175 pound frame he’s listed at. I stood next to him and he can’t be more than 5-9. He may just be too small for the NBA, but he is feisty and that may keep him around.

Memphis Grizzlies (2-5)

Drew Gooden was the best overall player of the top draft picks in the Summer League. He is comfortable around the basket and ready to play right now. His fade-away and short jump shot are solid and he can create and dish from the post. He was a 20 -10 guy throughout the tournament. Other than Drew, the Grizzlies had Eddie Gill, who scored a little bit. Fred House from the NBDL showed some flashes of an efficient NBA shot. Otherwise, there were few bright spots along the Grizzlies’ roster.

ALL SUMMER PRO LEAGUE TEAM

G Jason Richardson, Golden State
G Gilbert Arenas, Golden State
F Drew Gooden, Memphis
F Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix
C Thomas Hamilton, Dallas

2ND TEAM

G Kareem Rush, LA Lakers
G Tierre Brown, Houston
G Joe Johnson, Phoenix
F Eddie Griffin, Houston
F Troy Murphy, Golden State


Jon Finkel is a regular contributor to *********.com

[Dirk77]

Is that guy a damn moron?? Um..... no nba talent???? Damn, sorry Wahad, I guess we will have to cut you. Mladen, sorry, your not NBA material, lol!