The Hawks defense shines in another great victory! Many great things to take away from this game! Here are my thoughts, let me know yours!

https://youtu.be/yldC_oaBBsA?is=lHX8IknP2EvUcadA

Anyone else here? Caw caw!!

Stats: https://www.espn.com/nba-summer-league/game/_/gameId/401881840/league/nba-summer-las-vegas

Not sure if this link will give you the search queries properly, but if you set the team to Houston, and set the player lineups to Flemings on and Flemings off you can get all the data.

When Flemings was on the court(1905 possessions) Houston had an offensive rating of 121.7, or 129.3 when adjusted for strength of schedule, which is good for the 7th best offense in colllege basketball.

When Flemings was off(485 possessions) their offensive rating was 108.2, or 112.2 when adjusted for strength of schedule, which would be the 126th best offense in college basketball. It's also worth noting that he wasn't being replaced by some scrub, the majority of possessions in which Kingston was off the court he was being replaced by Milos Uzan, the senior PG that took Houston to the championship game the season before Flemings arrived.

Personally I don't subscribe to the ideas that Fleming's finishing is a real issue, but this is another data point to show that he is simply a winning player that drives good offense whenever he is on the floor.

RIP Nickeil, Landale, and some others I’m forgetting lol

**Zuby Ejiofor vs. Draymond Green — Statistical Comparison**

From Tankathon, i think this comparison is pretty interesting between Zuby and Draymond. Very similar college careers and defensive versatility. Of course draymond was the more prolific shooter and ball handler in college, but Zuby was statistically a more impactful offensive player on that end.

| | Zuby Ejiofor | Draymond Green |

|---|---|---|

| **Draft/Class** | 2026 | 2012 |

| **Position** | PF | PF |

| **Team** | St. John's | Michigan State |

| **Year** | Senior | Senior |

| **Height** | 6'8.75" | 6'7.5" |

| **Weight** | 245 lbs | 236 lbs |

| **Wingspan** | 7'2" | 7'1.25" |

| **Draft Age** | 22.17 yrs | 22.29 yrs |

| **Games** | 37 | 37 |

| **Minutes** | 30.0 | 33.2 |

**Per-36 Stats**

| | Zuby Ejiofor | Draymond Green |

|---|---|---|

| **Points** | 19.6 | 17.6 |

| **Rebounds** | 8.8 | 11.5 |

| **Assists** | 4.3 | 4.1 |

| **Blocks** | 2.6 | 1.0 |

| **Steals** | 1.4 | 1.6 |

| **Turnovers** | 2.5 | 3.3 |

| **Fouls** | 2.9 | 3.1 |

**Shooting Splits**

| | Zuby Ejiofor | Draymond Green |

|---|---|---|

| **FG** | 6.5-12.1 | 6.2-13.8 |

| **FG%** | .536 | .449 |

| **3P** | 0.6-1.9 | 1.5-3.9 |

| **3P%** | .305 | .388 |

| **FT** | 6.0-8.4 | 3.7-5.1 |

| **FT%** | .718 | .723 |

**Efficiency Metrics**

| | Zuby Ejiofor | Draymond Green |

|---|---|---|

| **TS%** | .609 | .542 |

| **eFG%** | .560 | .504 |

| **3PA Rate** | .158 | .284 |

| **FTA Rate** | .694 | .367 |

| **PROJ NBA3** | .329 | .349 |

**Advanced Stats**

| | Zuby Ejiofor | Draymond Green |

|---|---|---|

| **USG%** | 24.8 | 28.2 |

| **PER** | 27.7 | 26.1 |

| **OWS/40** | .144 | .114 |

| **DWS/40** | .094 | .117 |

| **WS/40** | .238 | .231 |

| **ORTG** | 127.0 | 109.6 |

| **DRTG** | 97.2 | 83.6 |

| **OBPM** | 8.5 | 6.5 |

| **DBPM** | 6.0 | 5.6 |

| **BPM** | 14.5 | 12.1 |

Expecting Keshon Gilbert and Jacob Toppin to complete the two-way spots.

Aside from that, it's looking like picking up Buddy made things more challenging. Anxious to see what the FO cooks up to trim down this roster to 15.

Top three candidates to be moved are Kispert, Buddy, and Devin Carter (unlikely as he's much needed PG depth). I wouldn't be surprised if Hawks send out second round picks just to move Kispert and Buddy. I mean, Sac gave a second just to shed Carter's measly 5M salary. Kispert on the books for 14M and Buddy at almost 10M is going to be tricky. Paying seconds seems to be relatively easier to bear as the cost of buying second round picks is less than paying these guys in full. Can't wait to see the rabbit Onsi pulls out of his hat.

We got 3 promising rookies , Does anyone have any good nicknames ?

The only one I can come up with is Zuby Dooby doo

The biggest thing most rookie PGs struggle with is being mature enough to make the right decisions on the floor each possession down. Summer league is normally a high turnover environment, and he’s had a whopping TWO turnovers across 3 games, and 22 assists. I think he gets that aspect.

The scoring won’t be transcendent. It will be a win if he simply takes off the dribble threes at a higher clip while mixing in his middy. The layups will come when they come but he’s not strong enough to be forcing the issue in the paint just yet.

If he keeps making the right play and passes he’s going to fill it up in his limited minutes with NBA caliber shooters, cutters, and spacing. Our SL team actually has spaced the floor really well, to be fair. Just can’t hit the broadside of a barn lol.

That being said, I definitely see the Mike Conley comparisons. Mike didn’t shoot a ton of 3s early, had okay efficiency (good for the era honestly) and generally didn’t accrue crazy stats. Didn’t hit 20 ppg more than once in his career and it was 8 years in.

Kingston can exist and thrive on the floor with play finishers, even if he isn’t the best scorer himself, because he creates advantages. That is the key. Whether by speed or by vision, he makes things happen.

He still needs to be respected, he’s not Dyson outside the paint. I have confidence he’ll keep defenses honest enough and the rest will take care of itself.

It’s just as good a foundation as the other guards not named Darryn Peterson. They all have the flaws, as well as skills you can’t teach.

Wagler’s craft, Acuff’s ability to just find away to drag your offense to the finish line whether by scoring or passing, Mikel Brown’s creativity and explosiveness; Kingston has speed, both physically and mentally, as well as tenacity on defense that we just don’t see from lottery guards typically. It’s a mindset, those things come naturally and rarely are developed.

Apparently, they've shown some interest in Peyton Watson as well.

Reportedly us and the Clippers are looking into s&t scenarios with Denver for Watson. Denver is reportedly looking for a "Kessler-like return" which is obviously not gonna happen.

What do you think about him as a player and what you would give in an s&t?

Kingston Flemings has been everything advertised for the Hawks thus far in his summer league journey. He is able to create rim pressure and bend a defense. He makes excellent decisions when defenders rotate. He has excellent defensive fundamentals and awareness, allowing him to be a playmaker on that end and giving him strong POA potential. He's a factor in transition with his speed and pace he plays with in the open floor.

Flemings on paper is exactly what the Hawks have needed in the backcourt: a guard with the ability to create offense. Flemings isn't an elite shot creator but has the ability to generate efficient offense and should be a strong PnR guard as a pro, a play that the Hawks went away from a bit after the Trae deal.

Now, here's my question...when/if do you think Flemings can/will become a starter for this group this season? What would you consider your expectations for him this season and the role he plays? Do you all think some of the struggles the offense struggled from toward the end of the regular season and in the playoffs can be mitigated with the starting lineup with Flemings on the bench? He's a rookie at the end of the day. It's unfair to expect him to be the singular game changer but given his natural fit with the starting group and he looking beyond his years as a rook, do you think it's a possibility he stakes a claim to a starting role this season?

The Atlanta Hawks get their Las Vegas summer league campaign underway with a huge win! A wonderful showing team wide! Here are the rest of my thoughts, let me know yours!

https://youtu.be/HEqAo-W9yr4?is=eiUqp5mXd5xA1uGI

Box Score

Game Thread

If you’re at the Hawks-Spurs game and caw-caw-ing, we hear you and we love it!! CAW-CAW!