{"id":149777,"date":"2025-07-11T09:31:56","date_gmt":"2025-07-11T13:31:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=149777"},"modified":"2025-07-11T09:31:56","modified_gmt":"2025-07-11T13:31:56","slug":"cooper-flagg-best-summer-league-performances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/07\/11\/cooper-flagg-best-summer-league-performances\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Summer League Performances By No.1 Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/f\/flaggco01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cooper Flagg<\/a> had his long-awaited debut in the NBA Summer League. The ticket prices for his debut were soaring. With as much hype, Flagg didn\u2019t disappoint. While he finished with only 10 points on 5-21 shooting, Cooper showed an ability to make winning plays. Today, however, we will look at something different. These are the best summer league performances by No.1 overall picks.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_149782\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-149782\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-149782\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26621879_168414264_lowres-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-149782\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jul 10, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) subs out against the Los Angeles Lakers in the second quarter of their game at Thomas &amp; Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>The Best Summer League Performances By No.1 Picks<\/h2>\n<p>The NBA introduced the Summer League in 2004, and since then, it has been a platform for rookies and young players to get a taste of what is ahead. Sometimes, teams use the Summer League to also use second or and third-year players to help them further develop. With that in mind, through the years, we have had some great performances. Some players, however, didn\u2019t get the chance to show off their skills. For example, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/e\/edwaran01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Anthony Edwards<\/a> was drafted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and there was no Summer League. With that in mind, here are some of the best Summer League performances by No.1 overall draft picks.<\/p>\n<h3>Zion Williamson<\/h3>\n<p>The hype around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/willizi01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Zion Williamson<\/a> was real during the Summer League. Fans knew that an athletic phenomenon was coming to the league. And he didn\u2019t disappoint. Averaging 21 points per game, Zion put on a show with his athletic ability.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Zion Picks Knox, Finishes with Big Dunk vs Knicks | 2019 Summer League Highlights\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YmbDRe9hfM8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Victor Wembanyama<\/h3>\n<p>The San Antonio Spurs needed only two games of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/wembavi01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Victor Wembanyama<\/a> in the Summer League. They <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/news\/spurs-sideline-victor-wembanyama-for-rest-of-summer-league\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">saw<\/a> enough and shut him down. During those two games, Wembanyama played 54 minutes and posted 36 points, 20 rebounds, eight blocks, and three assists. His defensive impact was visible from Day 1.<\/p>\n<h3>Cade Cunningham<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/cunnica01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cade Cunningham <\/a>was viewed by some as a smaller version of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">LeBron James<\/a>. He was seen as a point guard with an athletic ability to drive to the basket at will and make winning plays. In three games, he showed every part of his game. Cade was money from behind the arc, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/summer-league\/2021\/vegas\/player-stats\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">shooting<\/a> 50% (13-26). At the same time, he averaged 5.7 rebounds.<\/p>\n<h3>Paolo Banchero<\/h3>\n<p>Like Wembanyama, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/banchpa01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Paolo Banchero<\/a> needed only <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nba\/story\/_\/id\/34228644\/orlando-magic-shut-paolo-banchero-remainder-2022-nba-summer-league\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">two games<\/a> in the Summer League to show he is the real deal. The Orlando Magic forward averaged 20 points, six assists, and five rebounds. Having a 20\/5\/5 season is amazing, and Paolo did it the moment he stepped onto the floor for the Las Vegas Summer League. He posted those averages only once in his career, during the 2023-24 season.<\/p>\n<h3>Markelle Fultz<\/h3>\n<p>The Philadelphia 76ers selected <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/f\/fultzma01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Markelle Fultz<\/a> over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/t\/tatumja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jayson Tatum<\/a>. Nowadays, that decision seems strange. But at the time, Fultz was one of the best scorers in college basketball. His shot was pure, and in the summer league, he showed how easily he can put the ball in the basket. Fultz averaged 20 points, 3.5 rebounds, and three assists during his summer league play.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Markelle Fultz&#039;s Full Vegas Summer League Highlights | 20.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Cmm--hagr4c?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>The Future for Cooper Flagg<\/h3>\n<p>Even the best Summer League performances have no real correlation to being a good NBA player. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/y\/youngtr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Trae Young<\/a> struggled during his summer league play. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/k\/knoxke01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Knox<\/a> had one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.postingandtoasting.com\/2018\/7\/17\/17583946\/kevin-knox-made-the-all-nba-summer-league-first-team\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">best performances<\/a> ever in the Summer League, and he is nothing more than a role player. Anthony Edwards didn\u2019t even participate in the summer league due to COVID-19 restrictions. We need to give players time to develop before we judge them. Looking at some of the No.1 picks that performed well in the summer league, Williamson (due to injuries) and Fultz have had disappointing NBA careers to date. We will see how Flagg continues his <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/06\/26\/cooper-flagg-contract-earnings\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">NBA journey<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Photo credit: \u00a9 Candice Ward-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cooper Flagg had his long-awaited debut in the NBA Summer League. The ticket prices for his debut were soaring. With as much hype, Flagg didn\u2019t disappoint. While he finished with only 10 points on 5-21 shooting, Cooper showed an ability to make winning plays. Today, however, we will look at something different. These are the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5291,"featured_media":149781,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,30,62,3],"tags":[3965,48964,668,3823,4669,1684],"class_list":["post-149777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-mavericks","category-nba","category-news","tag-cade-cunningham","tag-cooper-flagg","tag-markelle-fultz","tag-paolo-banchero","tag-victor-wembanyama","tag-zion-williamson"],"modified_by":"Kenny Kluska","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5291"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=149777"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149777\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":149783,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149777\/revisions\/149783"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/149781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}