Buckeyes Earn Chances to Impress NBA Teams in Orlando, Salt Lake City & Vegas

By Mike Young on July 6, 2015 at 10:10 am
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Objectively, it's difficult for any Ohio State basketball fan to argue that the past two seasons reached Thad Matta's usual standard of excellence. 

The Buckeyes failed to finish among the top four in the Big Ten in 2013-14 and 2014-15. Given that NBA teams are interested in members of those two squads, "quality of talent" is not among the most significant reasons for OSU's struggles. 

D'Angelo Russell, Aaron Craft, LaQuinton Ross, Lenzelle Smith Jr., Shannon Scott and Sam Thompson will all suit up for summer league teams. Russell will make the Lakers, barring a trade or something completely unforeseen. The rest would, undoubtedly, prefer to stick in the United States for their playing careers.

A good first step in doing so is impressing someone around the NBA during the month of July. It may not lead to a training camp invite, but all five have a chance to earn it:

Aaron Craft

Teams: Charlotte Hornets, Golden State Warriors
Locations: Orlando (July 4-10), Las Vegas (July 10-20)

Although he ended last season with the Santa Cruz Warriors – winning NBA D-League Defensive Player of the Year and a D-League title – Craft will start this summer in the Hornets organization. It mimics last season's decision to play in Orlando and Vegas, as he started out with the 76ers before hooking up with the Warriors' summer league squad.

With Santa Cruz, Craft averaged 9.2 points per game on a respectable 43 percent shooting. He led those Warriors in minutes played, a clear indication he earned the coaching staff's trust and made the championship-winning team better. 

If Charlotte wants to keep three point guards on the roster, perhaps Craft will join Kemba Walker and Brian Roberts. Head coach Steve Clifford would certainly love to see his defensive intensity in practice. Considering his familiarity with the Warriors organization, it's probably more likely Craft returns to Santa Cruz for another season. Plus, if Golden State doesn't re-sign Leandro Barbosa, they will need to fill his spot on the roster. 

LaQuinton Ross

Teams: Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards 
Locations: Orlando (July 4-10), Las Vegas (July 10-20)

Ross will also double dip in the summer league, attempting to ingratiate himself with the NBA teams that shunned him after last year's disappointing pre-draft workouts.

He spent last summer with the Lakers but didn't play much. Ross left the country for an opportunity with VL Pesaro, an Italian Serie-A squad. He led the team in minutes, points and rebounds per game played while also hitting nearly 39 percent of his three-point attempts. 

Perhaps Ross regained some confidence while in Italy but it would only lead to a d-league deal, at best. Yet, the fact two teams put him on their summer league rosters can only mean good things for his professional career. 

Lenzelle Smith Jr.

Team: Orlando Magic
Location: Orlando (July 4-10)

The immediate impact Craft made in his first D-League season probably overshadowed his former teammate. Even so, Smith played in 47 games for the Erie Bayhawks last year.

There must be some inner-organizational faith in Smith, because the Bayhawks' parent club added him to their summer league roster. It's possible Orlando is purely looking for bodies considering they have two summer squads. 

Smith did play 11 minutes in their matchup with Detroit, however. He only attempted one shot, a made three, while adding two rebounds and two assists to his stat line. His best attribute in college was his defensive versatility. Considering the Magic have lengthy wings like Victor Oladipo, Evan Fournier, Maurice Harkless and draftee Mario Hezonja, they have no immediate need for Smith.

Shannon Scott

Team: San Antonio Spurs
Location: Salt Lake City (July 6-9)

Shannon Scott lucked out with the opportunity to work with the most stable organization in the NBA – perhaps in all of sports – even if it is only for four days.

The organization will be closely monitoring the point guard situation in Salt Lake City, also potentially to Scott's benefit. San Antonio allowed backup point guard Corey Joseph to leave and sign with Toronto. So, the Spurs need another point guard and would like to spend as little as possible to do it. 

Scott isn't the ideal choice considering he wasn't the full-time point guard at in his four seasons at Ohio State. Nevertheless, he will have the opportunity to learn from and match up against teammates Will Cherry and Casper Ware, both of whom have NBA experience.

Sam Thompson 

Teams: Minnesota Timberwolves
Location: Las Vegas (July 10-20)

Thompson was originally slated to play for the 76ers' summer league squad in Salt Lake City. That recently changed:

He certainly doesn't stand a better chance to make the Wolves. At this stage in their rebuilding, the Sixers are filling out the roster with sub-replacement level players and still accumulating draft picks. Minnesota, meanwhile has the last three No. 1 overall picks on its roster – yes, technically including Anthony Bennett – and its rebuilding plans are far more accelerated than Philly's. 

If Thompson does stick on the Wolves' summer league team, he'll open up the Vegas session against Russell and the Lakers. 

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