Three Cavs Standouts From NBA Summer League
The Cleveland Cavaliers' young core impressed the NBA world and won the championship Summer League Championship on Monday night with a perfect 6-0 record.
It's hard to choose just three players stood out the most. But these were the ones that really made an impact when on the floor.
Sam Merrill
The team leader in points per game for the Cavs was Sam Merrill as he averaged 20.4 points a game while shooting 45 from the field. The main reason he scored this much was because of how well he shot from three.
Merrill shot 46 percent from behind the arc on 11.2 attempts a game. This included when he made eight threes against the Memphis Grizzlies.
It'll be hard for Merrill to crack the rotation this season, but he's certainly raised some eyebrows in the organization and around the league.
Craig Porter Jr.
Just because a player goes undrafted, doesn't mean they don't have anything to give. Craig Porter Jr. is the perfect example of a player who may be overlooked by some teams but still has a lot to give.
Porter played in all six games for the Cavs and averaged 12.0 points per game, 5.3 assists, and 7.3 rebounds. Essentially, he did a little bit of everything when he was on the floor and made his presence felt.
The Witchita State product may be on a two-way deal right now, but Porter could also be playing in some big moments for Cleveland at some point this season.
Emoni Bates
This last one was a tough one. It was between Emoni Bates and Isaiah Mobley, but in the end, I went with Bates. This is why:
There were a number of questions about Bates when he was drafted by the Cavs. This is one of the reasons why he fell to Cleveland in the second round.
In the end, Emoni was incredible on offense and averaged 17.2 points a game, and shot 44 percent from the floor. But he was just as effective on defense too. He averaged just under a block and steal per game. Just take a look at this block in the championship game:
Bates played as well as anyone could imagine and he's setting himself to have a nice season with the Charge/Cavs.
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