MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Memphis Grizzlies comes to an end with a 90-87 loss to San Antonio, Saturday, however multiple rookies on the roster showed promise ahead of the regular season.
The most exciting, Kenny Lofton Jr.
Some are wondering if Jr's consistent and mature play will actually have his current status of two-way player changed to a player on the main roster.
Lofton, who most would say is undersized, showed that he could bang with the best of them down low and force opponents to defend him away from the basket as well.
Kenneth Lofton Jr. paced the Grizzlies (2-3) with 27 points and 12 rebounds against the Spurs.
Averaging 21.7 minutes in the 2k23 summer league, Lofton produced 15.2 points per game shooting 57.7 percent from the field and 30 percent from beyond the arc.
First-rounder David Roddy added 19 points.
Roddy finished averaging 15 points a game although his shooting percentages don't completely reflect his impact for the Grizzlies. Roddy averaged 44 percent from the field and only 22 percent from three.
"Rowdy Roddy" showed his ability to be a problem adding some outside scoring and his ability to get crafty around the basket which could earn him some minutes this coming season.
Ronaldo Segu and Kennedy Chandler scored 13 and 10, respectively.
Chandler's quickness on and off the ball were the biggest takeaways from his showing in Vegas and Utah.
Chandler average 9 points per game in addition to 2 steals per games.
Although able to shoot from outside, Chandler defense outshined his shooting ability this summer, Kennedy IQ was on full display reading defenses and forcing turnovers that converted into scoring for Memphis.
The Grizzlies first pick of the draft, Jake Laravia, entered health and safety protocols not long after making an appearance in this years summer league.
