NBA Player News

Caldwell-Pope exited Friday’s loss to the Thunder with a jaw injury suffered during the second quarter and did not return. His absence from the injury report means that he’ll play rotation minutes off the bench, but this will not affect fantasy basketball.

While Philon and the 76ers were on the wrong end of an 87-62 outcome, the rookie guard’s play was one of the bright spots. He played efficiently, shooting the ball well and committing just one turnover, and the defensive stats were there as well. Given Philadelphia’s perimeter rotation, it will be challenging for Philon to get the minutes needed to be relevant in standard redraft leagues. However, he’s a must-have in dynasty leagues because of his upside.

Crawford spent last season with the Rockets on a two-way contract. While he is currently a restricted free agent, Houston’s willingness to extend a qualifying offer indicates what they think of the forward. Crawford put forth another quality performance on Tuesday, scoring on all three levels and playing well defensively. Houston still has an open two-way contract slot, so they could conceivably keep Crawford for another season under that designation. However, his play in Las Vegas may get him a look from other NBA teams needing frontcourt depth.

Thornton, whom the Rockets signed to a standard contract, continues to impress in Las Vegas. The former Ohio State standout was efficient as both a scorer and a playmaker in Tuesday’s 87-62 victory, and his final line was missing only a blocked shot. While Thornton may not land in a position to be fantasy-relevant immediately, his basketball IQ makes it possible for the rookie to earn consistent playing time next season. He’ll have value within dynasty leagues; his chances in redraft leagues will depend on the health of Houston’s veteran guards.

Given how well Dybantsa played in his two appearances in Las Vegas, this was the expected conclusion for the first overall pick in last month’s draft. The 6-foot-9 forward totaled 50 points in his two appearances, most recently recording a 23/7/2/3/2 line in Sunday’s win over the Kings. Dybantsa being ruled out for the rest of summer league will allow the other young Wizards more room to show what they can provide. Fantasy-wise, Dybantsa should be one of the first rookies off the board in drafts, regardless of league format. Will Riley and Tre Johnson are also done for the summer.

After shooting 2-of-15 from the field in his summer league debut, Evans had an even tougher night on Monday. The rookie wing missed all eight of his shots from the field, only scoring multiple points due to a made free throw on a two-shot foul (which counts for two points in summer league). Most important for Evans and the Timberwolves is that the slump doesn’t undermine his aggressiveness on offense; he can’t stop shooting, but he also has to avoid pressing too much. It hasn’t looked good for Evans so far, but “it’s only summer league.”

Currently on a two-way contract, Zikarsky is looking to further solidify his status in the NBA after appearing in just five games as a rookie. The 6-foot-8 forward has started all three games in Las Vegas, struggling in the first two before rebounding nicely on Monday. The Timberwolves have been without Joan Beringer for each of the last two, with his absence putting a little more on Zikarsky’s plate, even though they don’t play the same position. While he’s unlikely to get the opportunities needed to impact redraft leagues, Zikarsky is worth stashing in deeper dynasty leagues following Minnesota’s trade of Julius Randle and Naz Reid.

Signed to a two-way contract in March, Youngblood’s place on the Trail Blazers’ roster is relatively secure. He was excellent on Monday, leading six Portland players in double figures with 20 points and shooting 3-of-7 from beyond the arc. Unfortunately for Youngblood, Portland’s perimeter depth will make it challenging for him to get the opportunities needed to move from his two-way deal to a standard contract. He may be worth stashing in deep dynasty leagues, but that’s it.

Back in action after sitting out Sunday’s game against the Magic with an illness, Hansen had his best game of this year’s summer league. The second-year center missed just one shot from the field and did a good job of facilitating offense in the 111-84 victory. Hansen did not record any defensive stats, but the increased comfort on the offensive end was encouraging. The question now is whether the Trail Blazers feel that Hansen has shown them enough to merit being shut down for the rest of the summer. If anything, he’ll be best served by getting live reps against legitimate NBA bigs, which is unlikely to happen often in Portland’s remaining summer league games.

Limited to seven points in Sunday’s loss to the Spurs, Marković more than doubled that output on Monday. The rookie forward, who remained overseas last season after being selected with the 47th overall pick, shot 4-of-7 from beyond the arc against the Suns. Overall, Marković has looked more comfortable than fellow rookie Nate Ament (eight points, three rebounds, one assist, one block and two three-pointers vs. Phoenix), which can be owed to the former’s prior professional experience. The question when training camp opens in September is whether there will be room in the Bucks’ frontcourt rotation for both Marković and Ament.

Playing against college teammate Koa Peat for the first time as pros, Burries recorded his second 20-point game in as many nights. The former Arizona guard was efficient as a scorer and playmaker, committing just one turnover. If there was an issue for Burries, it was that he went 3-of-7 from the foul line, but that was not an issue for him at the college level. His play in Las Vegas has been encouraging for both the Bucks and fantasy managers considering Burries in their drafts. Milwaukee’s perimeter logjam may make it challenging for Burries to log heavy minutes as a rookie, but getting into the rotation is certainly a reasonable expectation.