The Cleveland Cavaliers looked fairly good in their first Las Vegas Summer League game, beating the Milwaukee Bucks 70-68 on Friday night. The big showdown between Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker didn't disappoint, as both players flashed the talents that made them the top two selections in the NBA Draft, and Anthony Bennett and Giannis Antetokounmpo did fairly well to protect the honor of the 2013 NBA Draft. David Blatt also looked very impressive in his debut as head coach.
Today, the Cavs will play their second Summer League contest, and the degree of difficulty could be raised, as the Cavs take on the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs' roster has several more NBA-level prospects than the Bucks have, and the Spurs looked very solid in their Summer League opener, destroying the Sacramento Kings 85-69 on Friday night.
Who: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. San Antonio Spurs
When: 4:00PM ET
Where: Cox Pavillion -- Las Vegas, NV
How Can I Watch: Summer League Live
Music:
Andrew Wiggins looked exactly like the player that the was advertised to be Friday night. He was very impressive overall, but had some clear problem areas that weren't exactly surprising. Wiggins led the Cavs in scoring, with 18 points on 7-18 shooting, and pitched in 3 rebounds against the Bucks. Wiggins was clearly the most athletic player on the floor Friday night, creating some havoc on the defensive end and flashing blow-by ability on the offensive end to go along with a couple of nasty dunks. He went 1-8 from three, which was problematic, but three-point shooting has always been an issue for Wiggins, and the fact that he took 8 threes might signify that improving shooting is a point of emphasis for his development, which is good. The most surprising takeaway from the game was his handle, which looks much more clean than it did at Kansas. Case in point, DAT STEPBACK:
Anthony Bennett, meanwhile, was probably the most impressive player for the Cavs, simply due to the fact that we had no idea what to expect from him. He looked to be in a lot better shape, which is good, and was very active on both ends, finishing with 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals. He also had a couple of monster dunks in transition, which were nice. There were still some very obvious flaws with Bennett, of course: He had 8 fouls, shot 6-16 from the field, and clearly got gassed in the second half. Today, it would be nice to see him be more disciplined on both ends, and potentially to have him play slightly less minutes so he can stay effective late in the game.
Matthew Dellavedova is a player that I want to see more from in today's game. He was his typical self defensively, creating a ton of havoc on the defensive end, but offensively he was playing primarily on the point, and did not look comfortable doing this. Delly made some bad decisions during Friday night's game, resulting in 6 turnovers, and he really looked hesitant with the ball in his hands, especially when the Bucks threw pressure at him. Since he's likely the primary backup point guard for the Cavs next season, I want to see Dellavedova display better decision making today.
The San Antonio Spurs' Summer League Roster is a fun one, as they have quite a few players who should be roster guys for them, including Jeff Ayres and Kyle Anderson. Austin Daye led the team in scoring in Friday night's game, going for 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists. Anderson is likely the player that could kill the Cavs though, as he's a great passer from the high post and perimeter, and Wiggins is going to have a tough assignment trying to keep him from feeding teammates. The Spurs have a very efficient Summer League team (As far as Summer League squads go), as they don't turn the ball over and kill you on the boards. The Cavs are going to have a tough matchup today with San Antonio.
Fear the Sword's Fearless Prediction: The Cavs keep it competitive, but the Spurs' Summer League team is solid, so I expect something like Spurs 72, Cavs 67.