Andrew Nembhard dazzles in final NBA Summer League appearance, leads Pacers to victory
Andrew Nembhard appears to have graduated from the NBA Summer League.
In what he expects to be his final game in Las Vegas, Nembhard scored a team-high 21 points to lead the Indiana Pacers to a 108-85 victory over the Orlando Magic on Monday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Nembhard, who informed the Spokesman-Review of his Summer League status, shot 8-for-16 from the field and 2-for-5 from deep, while also registering seven assists, three rebounds and three steals in 31 minutes of action.
“He played great,” said Indiana Summer League coach Jannero Pargo of Nembhard. “There’s just a comfort level having him out there with the ball. He makes the right read, makes the right play. He keeps us settled and gets us into offense without any problem.”
The second-year guard looked comfortable going up against Magic rookie Anthony Black, the sixth overall pick in last month’s draft. Nembhard repeatedly attacked Black off the dribble, setting up a string of pull-up jump shots and crafty finishes at the rim.
As the clock was winding down before halftime, Nembhard drove past Black and flipped a layup high off the glass to extend Indiana’s lead to 57-34.
Nembhard was also a difference-maker on the defensive end, helping limit Orlando to 40.5% shooting from the field and 18.8% from 3-point range. Black, Nembhard’s primary matchup, finished with eight points on 3 of 12 shooting.
“I think we switched some things up on the defensive end, did some more guard-your-yard kind of thing,” Nembhard said. “… The whole starting lineup did a really good job of playing hard and making the matchups personal.”
Nembhard opened the Summer League by posting 14 points and eight assists in a 91-83 win over the Washington Wizards on Saturday.
Without Nembhard, the Pacers return to action on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
