2. Keyonte George
There’s no doubt in my mind that Keyonte George would be higher on this list if it wasn’t for the injury he suffered during Game #3 of the Las Vegas portion of the Summer League. George, who is going to vie for playing time from Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton, was a bucket-getter in Las Vegas.
While George struggled in Utah (.378/.294/.824), he soared in Las Vegas (.523/.444/.636), and had some solid stats across both leagues; putting up 18.67 points, 5.33 assists and 3.67 rebounds per game, all while running around on defense.
George really impressed many folks with his play in Las Vegas and while his Salt Lake City play isn’t anything to write home about, it’s also easy to explain it away as nerves from a rookie. After all, despite five players being on this list, only one, George, is a rookie.
Everyone before and after George has had at least one year’s worth of action in the NBA. So we can excuse a rough start. That said, it’ll be interesting if this intensity we saw in Summer League carries over to training camp. As that will decide if he takes time away from Sexton or Clarkson; or if he even takes their spot.