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Winners and Losers From NBA Summer League Las Vegas 2026

Caleb Wilson, a new free-throw rule and Yaxel Lendeborg’s standout year continues.
Blake Silverman|
Caleb Wilson was an impressive prospect at North Carolina, but surprised with his shooting ability during Summer League with the Bulls.
Caleb Wilson was an impressive prospect at North Carolina, but surprised with his shooting ability during Summer League with the Bulls. | Louis Grasse/Getty Images

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Chicago BullsGolden State WarriorsSacramento KingsLos Angeles LakersBrooklyn Nets

The annual Summer League extravaganza has reached its conclusion, leaving us without NBA basketball until October.

It’s the end of a mad dash from the Knicks’ NBA title to the draft, trades and free agent signings galore. Now, the league rests. Well, at least on the court, because LeBron James remains a free agent after all.

The Warriors, one of James’s potential suitors, concluded this year’s Las Vegas Summer League with a win in the championship game over the Grizzlies behind a stellar performance from lottery pick and Michigan standout Yaxel Lendeborg. The 11-day long hoops festival was highlighted by matchups between the NBA’s youngest stars, most notably Washington’s AJ Dybantsa, Utah’s Darryn Peterson and Memphis’s Cameron Boozer—the top three picks of the 2026 draft.

After nearly two weeks where each day was packed with the last NBA games we’ll see for months, there’s plenty to remember on both ends of the spectrum. Here are the biggest winners and losers from this year’s Summer League action in Las Vegas:

Winner: Caleb Wilson

The top three prospects in the 2026 draft class were seen as a tier above the rest, but Chicago’s Caleb Wilson—the fourth pick—is right up there with Dybantsa, Peterson and Boozer. The North Carolina product averaged 23.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 stocks (steals plus blocks) while shooting 41.9% from three-point range over four Summer League games. In his first game in Vegas, he dropped 35 points and drained seven threes against Boozer and the Grizzlies.

His stats just prove that he passed the eye test with flying colors because each time Wilson was on the floor, he looked like the best player in the gym. The high-flying dunks, step-back threes and chase-down blocks were on full display as he dominated through his time in Vegas.

It’s just Summer League, but Wilson’s three-ball should be a welcome sight for Bulls fans. Distance shooting wasn’t a big part of his game with the Tar Heels as he shot just 25.9% on 1.1 attempts from deep per game last season. His shot looked pure from the NBA three-point line, we’ll see if it stays that way once his rookie campaign starts. Either way, it appears that Chicago got itself a potential star. 

Loser: Free throws

The NBA tested the “one free-throw rule” during Summer League. When free throws are awarded, the rule gives just one foul shot to the shooter no matter how many points are on the line. When two points are available at the line, there’s one free throw worth two points. One free throw for three points on a three-point foul, too. Normal free-throw rules applied during the last two minutes of the fourth quarter and overtime, so shooters aren’t off the hook in clutch scenarios.

The change is designed to speed up play and has been in use by the NBA G League since 2019. It remains to be seen whether the NBA will implement the rule for good. The league has used the Summer League to test rule changes in the past—coaches challenges, for example. In the G League, the one free-throw rule doesn’t have much of an impact on the game itself. It just cuts down on the sheer volume of free throws and makes the games go a bit quicker. Plus, the rule makes single free throws worth two or three points all the more consequential. 

We’ll see whether the NBA decides to enact it for good as the high volume of free throws has been more of a discussion point in recent years, thanks in part to a few specific players.

Winner: Bald being beautiful

A beauty of Summer League is the unknown names that pop on the scene for one reason or another. The basketball world fell in love with Jon Elmore for his glorious three-point celebration where he brushed his hand across the top of his bald head. 

He played for the Lakers’ Summer League team and has bounced around in the G League and overseas since he went undrafted during the 2019 NBA draft. With all due respect to the 30-year-old Elmore, his appearance doesn’t exactly scream NBA player, but he proved he has some game when he nailed a triple to beat the third-quarter buzzer against the Bulls. Looks can be deceiving, something that Lakers fans know all too well from Alex Caruso’s early days.

For all the men out there debating whether now is the time to let it go, bald is most certainly beautiful.

Loser: Drake Powell

Brooklyn Nets guard Drake Powell shoots the ball against Indiana Pacers guard Taelon Peter.
Nets guard Drake Powell suffered through a brutal shooting slump during Summer League. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There are cold shooting stretches and there’s whatever Nets second-year guard Drake Powell went through during Summer League. In his first four games, which included the California Classic and his first two contests in Vegas, he went a dreadful 1-for-28 from the field. He then found some rhythm with an 18-point night on 6-for-10 shooting in Brooklyn’s penultimate Summer League game, but he fell back into the slump with a 1-for-6 performance to close it out. 

If you can pick a time where you can’t buy a bucket, any player would likely pick Summer League. However, it was certainly a rough showing for one of the Nets’ young talents in an already crowded guard room. Brooklyn won’t look to compete this year, but the arrival of No. 6 pick Mikel Brown Jr. after the franchise took four guards in the first round of last year’s draft means minutes are scarce and the competition will be fierce. To Powell’s credit, he remained confident through the shooting woes.

“They're not going in right now. But I'm going to continue to put them up and have full confidence that they'll go in,” Powell said of the slump via Erik Slater of ClutchPoints. “Some nights are obviously hard when I'm by myself in the hotel room. But just been [having] constant conversations with my circle and continuing to trust them and my coaches."

He now has the rest of the summer and all of training camp to get right as he looks to carve out his own role in Brooklyn’s packed backcourt.

Winner: Yaxel Lendeborg’s hardware closet

Golden State Warriors draft pick Yaxel Lendeborg throws t-shirts to fans during a Golden State Valkyries game.
Yaxel Lendeborg looks like the plug-and-play contributor that the Warriors were hoping for so far. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Warriors beat the Grizzlies in the Summer League championship game on Sunday behind Lendeborg’s 21-point, 10-rebound double-double in 23 minutes of play. He was named the championship game MVP, just the latest honor in an incredible year. Golden State took the 23-year-old forward with the No. 11 pick in the draft after he helped lead Michigan to a national title during his sole season as a Wolverine.

Lendeborg was the Big Ten Player of the Year, a consensus first-team All-American, a national champion, a lottery pick and, now, a Summer League champion and MVP. He received some flak through the transition to the NBA as an older prospect and for some colorful media quotes which even caught Draymond Green’s attention. On the court, though, he’s continued to dominate and has started to prove Golden State right for betting on an older player who can help the team faster compared to the usual lottery prospect. And in a span of two weeks, he gets another ring to put next to his shiny Michigan championship ice.

Loser: The art of defense

NBA commissioner Adam Silver greets the seventh pick in the 2026 NBA draft, Arkansas guard Darius Acuff Jr.
Kings rookie Darius Acuff Jr. is an offensive dynamo, but will need to show better on the defensive end to be a reliable NBA player. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Summer League isn’t exactly the setting for stalwart defense, but lapses on that end of the floor still stand out, especially for the NBA’s newest faces.

After one season at Arkansas, everyone knew Darius Acuff Jr. could score at an elite level. As an undersized guard, getting picked on defensively was the major concern for Acuff as a draft prospect, and he didn’t offset the worries in Summer League. He can’t do anything about his lack of size, but he was caught ball watching numerous times that led to easy looks for the opposition. This clip was the most glaring, where he leaves his man and walks aimlessly off the ball which leads to a wide open three-pointer.

It’s just one play, but it is a trend and something Acuff will need to fix as he adjusts to the league with Sacramento. Offensively, he was inefficient shooting the ball but flashed the scoring and playmaking ability that made him so highly regarded as a prospect. Even though the shots didn’t fall, there’s little concern about Acuff’s offensive power translating to the next level. But he needs the scoring to outweigh the defensive negatives. A little bit of effort will go a long way on the defensive side of the ball.

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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a writer at Sports Illustrated, primarily covering the NBA and WNBA. Before joining SI in November 2024 as a breaking/trending news writer, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation and A10Talk. He’s an alum of both Michigan State and St. Bonaventure University, receiving a master’s degree from the Bonnies’ sports journalism program. Outside of work, he’s a husband, father, yogi and fairly mediocre tennis player who’s open to any tips on how to play defense in EA Sports College Football.

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