Summer League Recap: Celtics Finish 1-4 in Vegas

The Boston Celtics finished off summer league with a 80-75 loss to Portland

Summer league has officially ended for the Boston Celtics. They wrapped up play in Las Vegas on Saturday night with an 80-75 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. The Celtics rested Terry Rozier, James Young and R.J. Hunter for their consolation game. It was a smart move on Boston’s part as risking an injury seemed pointless at this stage of summer league.

That meant more responsibility for Jaylen Brown, Demetrius Jackson and Abdel Nader, three players who have had ups-and-downs this summer. Brown shined, again, as he capitalized on an average summer league performance.

He started out the game hot, scoring nine points in the first quarter. Although, he finished the game shooting 7-of-21 from the field and 1-of-7 from three, tallying 21 points, seven rebounds and five steals on the night. His defense was very impressive as he was playing the passing lanes and picking off passes, but his offense continued to struggle.

When he got to the basket, he was usually able to finish, and also went 6-of-8 from the line. However, his jump shot was still off all night, as it’s evident that will be his biggest learning curve in the NBA. His mechanics are very good, but he’s no where close to being a consistent outside shooter from anywhere on the perimeter.

Along with Brown, Jordan Mickey finally put together the dominating performance we’ve been waiting for. He posted 12 points, 13 rebounds and two steals, finishing with the only double-double in the game. Mickey made a lot of nice plays on defense, and, for once, the opposing team had no answer for the Celtics post game.

Abdel Nader made a strong case for him making the Celtics roster this year by adding 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting and going 3-of-4 from the arc. Guerschon Yabusele also added 12 points, giving the Celtics four starters finishing in double-digits.

For Portland, Pierre Jackson stole the show. He was easily the quickest guy on the floor and had no problem getting by Demetrius Jackson all night. His all-around game of 20 points, eight assists and five rebounds makes a good case for him to make an NBA roster.

Pat Connaughton finished with a game-high 23 points for the Trail Blazers, but they were the only two players on Portland to finish in double-digits. Second round pick Jake Layman added eight points and seven rebounds, however, his 2-of-9 shooting was atrocious as his two made baskets came from dunks.

Boston out-rebounded their opponent for the second straight game (37-36). However, it was a very sloppy game as the teams combined to commit 38 turnovers. The Celtics only committed six in the second half after a 14 turnover first half, but it hurt the rhythm of the game and was a big reason Boston was never able to pull away.

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The Celtics also struggled shooting from the outside. They shot a terrible 5-of-22 (22.7 percent) from three. With their three summer league veteran guards out of the lineup, that could have been expected, although seeing Demetrius Jackson try to take over would have been a good sign. He struggled again and is far from a sure thing of making the roster.

It was another game that Boston could have taken over but failed to gain control of the game. They played tough until the end, however, a few mishaps on the defensive end cost them late.

Boston will now have a couple of roster decisions to make, and won’t be in action again until the preseason. Although, Marcus Smart will be going up against the Olympic team as he was selected to be on Team USA’s Select Team this year.

Next: Blake Griffin vs Russell Westbrook

Boston finishes off summer league 3-0 in Utah, 1-4 in Las Vegas and 4-4 overall, with a first round knockout. It wasn’t the record many were hoping for, but their young players showed a lot of promise about what is in store in the near future for the Celtics.