{"id":51699,"date":"2023-07-11T15:34:36","date_gmt":"2023-07-11T19:34:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=51699"},"modified":"2023-07-11T15:34:36","modified_gmt":"2023-07-11T19:34:36","slug":"lakers-summer-league-two-way-talents-thriving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/07\/11\/lakers-summer-league-two-way-talents-thriving\/","title":{"rendered":"Lakers Summer League: Two-Way Talents Thriving"},"content":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0<\/span>Los Angeles Lakers<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0have turned heads in\u00a0<\/span>NBA 2K24 Summer League<\/span><\/a>\u00a0with a 2-0 record and standout players. Though they are led by rising sophomore\u00a0<\/span>Max Christie<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a02023 Draft picks\u00a0<\/span>Jalen Hood-Schifino<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Maxwell Lewis<\/span><\/strong><\/a>, the team’s two-way contract players have made some noise and deserve recognition for their efforts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Los Angeles Lakers: Two-Way Talents Thriving in Summer League<\/span><\/h2>\n

Cole Swider<\/span><\/h3>\n

Returning to the LakeShow for the\u00a0<\/span>second year of his two-way deal<\/span><\/a>, former Syracuse wing\u00a0<\/span>Cole Swider<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is a proven three-point threat. Through LA\u2019s two games in Vegas, Cole averaged 13.5 points and five rebounds per game, shooting 41% from distance. He has continued his momentum from the California Classic, where he put up 15.5 points per game while shooting 54% from deep, including an\u00a0<\/span>18-point performance<\/span><\/a>\u00a0against the\u00a0<\/span>San Antonio Spurs<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0last Wednesday.<\/span><\/p>\n

The 6-foot-9 sharpshooter recorded 19 points on 7-14 shooting from the field and 5-8 from three in the Lakers\u2019 103-96 win over the\u00a0<\/span>Golden State Warriors<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0last Friday. His numbers dipped to eight points on 3-12 shooting from the field against the\u00a0<\/span>Charlotte Hornets<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0on Sunday. However, there\u2019s no reason to believe he won’t bounce back.<\/span><\/p>\n

With the Lakers relying on size and shooting heading into next season, Swider will be ready. He shows an impressive ability to shoot off the catch and make plays for others. Additionally, he consistently finds ways to get open for pull-up jumpers. His offensive skill set will be vital for the Lakers going forward. However, Swider’s defense needs to improve if he wants to earn those opportunities. It’s worth noting that he had several opportunities with the shorthanded Lakers last season. The most notable one was against the\u00a0<\/span>Denver Nuggets<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0in January. Hodge recorded six points (2-6 from the field), five rebounds and three assists in 26 minutes. Add that to his impressive performances in the G League, and he\u2019s someone the Lakers can use for extra shooting.<\/span><\/p>\n

Colin Castleton<\/span><\/h3>\n

Rookie\u00a0<\/span>Colin Castleton<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0impressed many during his Summer League run. Undrafted from the University of Florida, the 6-foot-11 center is averaging 17 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game in Vegas. Colin is shooting 67% from the field. He has also made an impact defensively, putting up 1.5 rebounds and 0.5 blocks per game in that span.<\/span><\/p>\n

Castleton has shown tremendous versatility on the offensive end of the floor. Colin has a soft touch at the rim, an array of post moves, and jump shots. He moves well off the ball, sets solid screens, and gets himself open for good looks in the paint. Colin also gets to the free-throw line at an impressive rate (5 makes per game of 6.5 attempts\u201477%). Additionally, he holds his own against stronger opposing bigs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That offensive versatility was on full display Sunday, as Castleton recorded\u00a0<\/span>21 points (8-13 from the field), 14 rebounds, and three assists<\/span><\/a>\u2014his best game of the summer so far. If he keeps this up, the Lakers may not have to look further for another center behind\u00a0<\/span>Anthony Davis<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Jaxson Hayes<\/span><\/strong><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

D\u2019Moi Hodge<\/span><\/h3>\n

Finally, former Missouri guard\u00a0<\/span>D\u2019Moi Hodge<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0has made a name for himself in Summer League. Hodge recorded\u00a0<\/span>16 points on an efficient 6-11 outing from the field<\/span><\/a>\u00a0on Sunday. He’s become the talk of the town for Laker fans thanks to sequences like this:<\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/AlexmRegla\/status\/1678796013518344192<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

The 6-foot-4 rookie has put up 13.5 points over LA\u2019s two Vegas contests, while shooting 50% from the field, 35% from three, and 67% from the line. He\u2019s stuffed the stat sheet in a myriad of ways, averaging 3.5 rebounds, one assist, one steal, and 1.5 blocks per game. His production has increased from the California Classic. Hodge averaged a modest 7.5 points per game on 37% shooting from deep in CA. Hodge is an impact player who hustles for the extra possession, qualities vital in any young player trying to prove their worth in Summer League.<\/span><\/p>\n

With the Lakers shoring up their guard depth, it appears they\u2019ve lucked out by adding the Mizzou guard. Hodge has shown promise as a 3-and-D player. His growth with the Lakers is an excellent first step in his NBA career. While there may not be many opportunities for Hodge right now, he can thrive under the leadership of Christie and\u00a0<\/span>Austin Reaves<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\u2014young guards who developed well in LA\u2019s system\u2014to make the most of his first season in the league.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Last Word on the Lakers Two-Way Players<\/span><\/h3>\n

Somehow, the Lakers\u2019 scouting department has done it again. They\u2019ve found gems in the pool of undrafted players to develop them into rotational pieces. It helps to have a G League affiliate that can help those players get adequate reps, but above all, Swider, Castleton, and Hodge have made solid impressions in Summer League. They are three young Lakers to watch as the offseason goes on. The Lakers Summer League is exciting.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Los Angeles Lakers\u00a0have turned heads in\u00a0NBA 2K24 Summer League\u00a0with a 2-0 record and standout players. Though they are led by rising sophomore\u00a0Max Christie\u00a02023 Draft picks\u00a0Jalen Hood-Schifino\u00a0and\u00a0Maxwell Lewis, the team’s two-way contract players have made some noise and deserve recognition for their efforts. Los Angeles Lakers: Two-Way Talents Thriving in Summer League Cole Swider Returning to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4265,"featured_media":51703,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_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":[62,26],"tags":[2413,4941,4942,777,2902,1224,1075],"class_list":["post-51699","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-lakers","tag-cole-swider","tag-colin-castleton","tag-dmoi-hodge","tag-florida-gators","tag-missouri-tigers","tag-nba-summer-league","tag-syracuse-orange"],"modified_by":"Mike Schretter","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51699","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\/4265"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51699"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51699\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51699"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51699"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51699"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}