The Heat’s search for value got a promising update in Summer League, and their second-round pick Ryan Conwell left a strong impression even with the shot not always falling. Miami got four games out of him across the California Classic and Las Vegas, and he kept firing away from deep, taking 36 threes and knocking down 11. The volume was there, but so was the confidence, and Summer League coach Wayne Ellington said the impact went beyond the jumper.
“ Defensively, he competes his butt off,” Ellington said. “ And then, obviously, offensively he’s a force and he makes tough shots.
He makes plays for others. He has a very strong offensive game and it’s only going to continue to grow.
”
Miami also got useful showings from a pair of unrestricted free agent guards, Trevor Keels and Jahmir Young, both of whom are still eligible for two-way contracts. Vladislav Goldin and Tre Donaldson already landed two-way deals this offseason.
Another name that stood out for the Heat was undrafted wing Tre White, who put together one of the better statistical runs on the roster in Las Vegas. He averaged 17.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.8 steals while hitting 40% of his threes, and Anthony Chiang notes he could be in line for a two-way or Exhibit 10 contract. Ellington was just as bullish on White’s long-term upside.
“ He’s got all the intangibles,” Ellington said of White. “ He’s got size.
He’s got the shooting ability. He’s got the IQ.
So, he’s a guy that is going to continue to get better. He showed some flashes as well during the summer league, and I look forward to seeing what he can do in the future.”
Around the league, Jalen Slawson put together a Summer League that was impossible to ignore for Indiana. The restricted free agent led the Pacers in scoring at 20.8 points per game and also topped the team in blocks at 3.2 per game, even while shooting just 29.0% from three.
Dustin Dopirak described his penultimate game as the full Slawson experience, with the kind of mistakes that can make you wince and the kind of recovery plays that keep you watching. In his final outing, he posted 22 points and four blocks, and Akeem Glaspie wrote that he continued to show the outline of an NBA rotation wing.
The Pacers’ decision won’t be simple, because the upside is obvious even with the rough edges still showing.
Boston brought four featured players into the summer: Hugo Gonzalez, Chris Cenac Jr., Dillon Mitchell, and Amari Williams. Souichi Terada reported that the first three clearly helped themselves, while Williams held steady. John Tonje, who spent last season on a two-way contract, didn’t boost his stock, but he did enough to stay in the mix for another two-way spot next year.
For Sacramento, Nique Clifford’s Summer League wasn’t about gaudy numbers. It was about growth in the areas the Kings wanted to see. He told Sean Cunningham of KCRA News that the focus was on being more assertive and sharper with his decisions.
“ I would say just more assertiveness, being aggressive, not questioning plays,” he said of what the Kings were looking for from him this year as compared to last year. “ If I see something, go make the play… [last year] you could mess up a little more, this year being a little sharper.”
Clifford also said he needed to be more aggressive defensively, instead of staying back and letting opponents come at him.
In Other News...
Celtics Just Passed On A Cheap Trade Chance That Will Frustrate Fans
The latest three-team shuffle around Oklahoma City, Atlanta and Dallas offered a reminder of how quickly a modest trade can become relevant in Boston. The Thunder moved Luguentz Dort and picked up three second-round picks plus a traded player exception, while Zaccharie Risacher and Ryan Nembhard were also part of the deal, leaving the Celtics to watch from the sidelines as another low-cost wing option came off the board.
Bostons decision was driven by the same roster math that has shaped so much of its recent thinking, with the club still working near the luxury-tax line and trying to keep an eye on a repeater-tax reset. The Celtics also have a crowded wing group already, with Hugo Gonzalez, Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman and Ron Harper Jr. in the mix, which makes the choice to pass understandable on paper even if it is the kind of move that tends to frustrate fans looking for a bargain addition. [Read more 🡒]
Joe Mazzulla Faces A Tricky Mike Conley Balancing Act
Mike Conley is headed toward a rare kind of longevity, with 2026-27 set to be his 20th NBA season and his 39th birthday coming in October. For the Celtics, that kind of mileage means the conversation is less about what Conley has been and more about how to keep him effective, which is why Boston is expected to be deliberate with his workload and flexible with the way it structures its backcourt and wing minutes.
Joe Mazzullas staff has options, but the balancing act goes beyond simply trimming a veterans minutes. The Celtics also want to keep developing younger pieces like Jordan Walsh, who has spent the offseason working to become a much better offensive player and reshape his identity, so the challenge is finding a rotation that protects Conley without slowing the growth of the next wave. [Read more 🡒]