How to Watch Knicks-Blazers Summer League Championship Game
The stage is set, the fans are ready and legacies will forever be made in the biggest championship game of the summer.
Wait, you think we are talking about the NBA Finals?
That is done and over with, we are talking about the Summer League Championship Game!
NBA Summer League has become such a monumental event each and every offseason and this 11-day spectacle keeps growing year-after-year in Las Vegas, Nevada.
This year, with things getting back to normal like they were pre-pandemic, NBA fans from around the world have made their great basketball pilgrimage to Las Vegas to see the stars of tomorrow in Summer League.
All good things must come to an end at some point though and Sunday, July 17 is the final day of the 2022 NBA2K23 Summer League, which means it is Championship Sunday!
The New York Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers will battle it out in the Summer League Championship Game on Sunday afternoon, a game that not only has bragging rights on the line, but some serious bling as well.
Here is everything you need to know about the biggest game at Summer League:
How to Watch 2022 NBA 2K23 Summer League Championship:
WHO: Portland Trail Blazers (3-1) vs. New York Knicks (3-1)
WHAT: 2022 2K23 Summer League Championship Game
WHEN: 3:00 p.m. ET, Sunday, July 17
WHERE: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
TV: ESPN
Stream: Fubo.tv CLICK HERE
Key Players To Watch For:
The New York Knicks head into the Summer League Championship as the best team in Las Vegas thanks to second-year guard Quentin Grimes. Through four games, Grimes has averaged 23.5 points (4th in Summer League), 4.5 rebounds and has shot 43.7% from the floor, proving to be the catalyst offensively for the Knicks. Miles McBride (16.8 points per game), Feron Hunt (11.8 points per game) and Jericho Sims (11.3 points per game) have also proven to be key offensive weapons for the Knicks in Summer League.
Finishing their four games with the second-best point differential, the Portland Trail Blazers are in the Summer League Championship Game for the third time dating back to 2017. Led by 2021 first-round pick Keon Johnson, the Blazers are an athletic and lengthy team that have turned out to be one of the better rebounding teams in Las Vegas. Alongside Johnson, Trendon Watford, Brandon Williams and 2022 second-round pick Jabari Walker have all helped the Trail Blazers make it to this point.
Key Stats To Know:
- The Portland Trail Blazers defeated the New York Knicks 88-77 on Monday, July 11 in Las Vegas. Quentin Grimes recorded a game-high 24 points in this one for New York, as Trendon Watford had 18 points for Portland.
- The Knicks have never been to the Summer League Championship Game. The Trail Blazers have now been in the Summer League Championship Game three times, winning it all in 2018.
- New York is scoring an average of 95.3 points per game (3rd in Summer League) and surrendering an average of 83.5 points per game.
- Portland is scoring an average of 84.0 points per game (23rd in Summer League) and surrendering an average of 75.8 points per game.
Prediction:
It is just Summer League, but for these two teams involved in this game, winning this championship means everything. Every single player on the New York Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers has something to play for in this game, which is why we should expect a physical matchup.
Portland did win against New York earlier in Summer League, but I am expecting the Knicks to return the favor here in the championship. Quentin Grimes has yet to record less than 22 points in a game in Las Vegas and with both Miles McBride and Feron Hunt being double-digit scorers in Summer League, it will be hard for the Trail Blazers to keep up with the Knicks’ scoring output.
New York needs something good to happen to them for once and who knows, maybe winning this Summer League Championship can jump-start this franchise back to its winning ways. Give me the Knicks 88-80 in a game that will be close up until the final few minutes of the fourth quarter.
