NBA Summer League Getting Cold Shoulder on NBA’s Effort to Innovate

Innovation seems to constantly be on NBA commissioner Adam Silver’s mind.

Silver hasn’t been shy when it comes to changing the league’s landscape, most notably by incorporating an in-season tournament into the schedule to give teams something to play for as the midpoint of the regular season approaches.

Both players and fans alike have reaped the benefits of Silver’s NBA, which has been extremely competitive for the better part of the past 11 seasons, producing eight different champions during that span.

However, the NBA Summer League has been getting the cold shoulder.

For the common fan, Summer League action probably isn’t even on the radar. And it’s easy to understand why. Cracking a couple of cold ones while beating the heat by taking the boat out on the lake sounds a lot better than parking in front of the TV to watch prospects and low-end role players go at each other in the middle of the afternoon.

If the second option does appeal to you, the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks tip off at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, just so you’re aware.

Still, there has to be a way for the NBA to draw attention to the Summer League and showcase its redeeming qualities.

We know this because there was plenty of buzz surrounding last year’s Las Vegas Summer League, where San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama took over the spotlight ahead of his rookie season.

Oklahoma City Thunder big man Chet Holmgren and Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. were also among the top names in Las Vegas in 2023.

But here in 2024, aside from the Bronny James storyline, there’s really been no reason to watch.

An extraordinarily bland draft class is the primary culprit, but this isn’t going to be the last time that a pool of rising rookies doesn’t have a handful of star-studded names about to officially hit the professional ranks.

The NBA got dealt a bad hand with this draft class. It’s still the league’s responsibility to make its product worth watching, even if it’s just Summer League basketball.

Shout out to players like Reed Sheppard, Jordan Miller and Julian Strawther for doing all they can to give us something to get excited about this summer. Sheppard, the No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft, has been one of the most impressive rookies thus far, averaging 22.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists across two games for the Rockets.

Miller and Strawther, who are both approaching their second NBA season, have each scored 57 points in two games for the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets, respectively.

If Silver wanted to make the most of the Summer League, he’d use it as a test lab for changes that the NBA could someday implement. In addition to potentially having the next great idea originate in Las Vegas, fans would also be more eager to watch, as they’d have the chance to see things that don’t show up during the regular season.

Getting young players a taste of pro ball is the primary goal of the Summer League, but why not push the envelope a bit?

Maybe that means an NCAA Tournament-style bracket where the last team standing gets some extra money. Or perhaps the Summer League MVP is guaranteed to land a roster spot.

At the end of the day, no one is going to make a huge fuss about how entertaining the Summer League is or isn’t. But we certainly wouldn’t be opposed to some somewhat meaningful NBA basketball in July, and what we have on the table right now certainly isn’t going to cut it.