Lakers: Cole Swider Continues to Shine on LA Summer League Team
Thirsty Lakers fans got their first sips of summer league play over the weekend. The Lakers summer league team won their first two games of the California Classic. LA took down the Miami Heat 100-66 on Saturday and following that up with a 100-77 victory over the Warriors. Scotty Pippen Jr. and Cole Swider, who the Lakers signed to two-way contracts, have led the way.
Swider made his bones in college as a three-point specialist, and so far, its translated to plenty of success in the California Classic. He's shot 8-for-13 (61.5%) from three. Across the two games, Swider owns a 66.7% field-goal percentage and led the team in scoring in their win over the Warriors.
Swider was the Rhode Island Gatorade Player of the Year of his junior year in high school. The 6'9" forward played his first three years of college ball at Villanova before transferring to Syracuse for his senior season.
For the Orangemen, Swider averaged 13.9 points per game and shot 41.1% from three.
Scott Pippen Jr. Standing Out
He stands out on name alone, but Scotty Pippen Jr. has also impressed so far in Summer League. The son of the Chicago Bulls Hall-of-Famer, and two-time All-SEC guard, is second in assists per game (5.5) and fourth in scoring average (14.5 PPG). He's also third in box plus-minus (+18).
Although he hasn't shot the three-ball well (25%), he and Swider are both proving so far that they were worth the Lakers investment.
The Lakers will look to finish the Classic with a perfect 3-0 record when they take on the Sacramento Kings Tuesday at 2:30PM PT.
LA will begin their four-game slate in the Las Vegas Summer League on Friday on 7:00PM PT against the Phoenix Suns.
