Summer League Recap: Terry Rozier Hits Game-Winner

The Boston Celtics finish 3-0 in the Utah Summer League, Vegas starts on Saturday

The two best teams in the Utah Summer League squared off on Thursday night, and it didn’t lack any fireworks. The San Antonio Spurs rookie Dejounte Murray stole the show early as he finished with 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting in 24 minutes of action. He was arguably the Spurs’ best player on the court last night, as the rookie made his debut.

Even with his impressive debut, Terry Rozier once again stole the show late in the game. Another Summer League game, another day questioning why Rozier is on the team in the first place. Rozier’s impressive stat line of 23 points, seven rebounds and six assists on 8-of-15 shooting takes a back seat to what he did in the final minute.

After a back-and-forth game, the Spurs took an 86-80 lead with just over a minute left. The game was all but over, however Rozier didn’t see it that way. He did exactly what Boston was hoping he’d do, take over the game. He ended up scoring seven straight points, including a cold-blooded game-winning three with 1.8 seconds left, while also getting fouled.

.@celtics' Terry Rozier scored the final 7 pts including the game-winning jumper! #NBASummer https://t.co/euGdrcaPnT
— NBA TV (@NBATV) July 8, 2016

The Celtics turned to him and he attacked the basket, played tough defense and then hit the biggest shot of the game. Forget the end result, that’s exactly what a player who is expected to have a significant role off the bench next season needs to do, and Rozier delivered in a big way.

Rozier still saw 31 minutes last night, although, rookie Demetrius Jackson finally got his chance. He ended up starting next to Rozier and contributed 11 points, three rebounds and two steals in 24 minutes. More importantly, he shot an impressive 3-of-4 from behind the arc. Although, his inability to record any assists doesn’t speak highly of his capability of running the point.

Still, it was an impressive showing for Jackson who was able to flash his quickness and three-point shot next to the team’s best player.

For the second straight game, Abdel Nader put together a solid performance. While his seven points on 3-of-3 shooting doesn’t jump off the stat sheet, he hustled, played hard and contributed off-the-ball.

The same goes for Guerschon Yabusele, who the Celtics don’t know if they’ll stash him overseas next season. Yabusele has been a surprisingly good ball-handler during the Celtics three games, and has shown great movement. With his size, you wouldn’t expect him to move well, however, he runs the floor well and is able to take his defender off the dribble.

He hasn’t shown the three-point shot people raved about when he was drafted – just one three-point attempt on Thursday – but his rebounding and interior scoring has been better than advertised. He finished the game shooting 3-of-5 from the field and tied Rozier with a team-high seven rebounds. It’s the second consecutive game that Yabusele was a major factor on the glass, something that will help him make the roster on a poor rebounding team.

Heading into Las Vegas, R.J. Hunter and Jaylen Brown are expected to return at some point. Also, giving Ben Bentil a bigger role should be a priority for the Celtics. While he hasn’t put up fantastic numbers due to the little playing time, Bentil has continued to be very productive in his small role. Maybe the Celtics are expecting him to make the roster, but seeing what he can do with a heavy workload is intriguing.

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For the Spurs, along with Murray, Kyle Anderson tied Rozier for a game-high 23 points. He finished with a double-double – 10 rebounds – and was near a triple-double with his seven assists, as well. He was unstoppable on Thursday night, just like he was during all three games in Utah.

Jonathon Simmons struggled shooting after putting together two very impressive games for the Spurs – 4-of-15 from the field – but he still finished with 13 points. The Spurs will also be in Las Vegas, and the Celtics have a chance to play them again if they meet up in the tournament. San Antonio is the defending champions of the Las Vegas Summer League, therefore they’ll have a target on their back.

Boston will have another day off before they take on the Chicago Bulls on Saturday. Jaylen Brown is expected to be back this weekend, as he was held out of last night’s game for precautionary reasons.

Next: Danny Ainge Played the Off-Season Perfectly

It was an impressive three games for the Celtics Summer League team, and they’ll be favored to go deep in the Las Vegas Summer League Tournament, as well.