Injuries hit Kings’ Bagley, others
Hawks’ Young, Celts’ Williams join list of aching top draft picks
Injuries have hit the NBA Summer League, with several notable players going down in the first three days. Those injured included first-round draft choices Marvin Bagley III of the Sacramento Kings, Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks and Robert Williams of the Boston Celtics.
Two players with local connections — former UNLV standout Derrick Jones Jr. and Bishop Gorman High graduate Zach Collins — were injured Sunday.
Teams tend to be highly conservative with the health of their top young players at Summer League. Players often are put on the bench for ailments they wouldn’t think twice of playing through during the regular season.
Only Bagley appears to be dealing with an injury of significant concern. He is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday for hip and groin injuries. The Kings held Bagley out Sunday against the Los Angeles Clippers, and he is doubtful for Tuesday’s game against Memphis.
Young has a deep bruise to his right quadriceps and Williams has a deep bruise to his left knee.
Jones and Collins injured their right ankles.
“It’s just a little ankle twist,” Jones said. “I’m a basketball player. I want to play every day of my life. The way it happened, the way the pain is, they just told me to rest and sit down.”
Collins also didn’t sound concerned, saying, “It’s sore right now, but I’ll be fine.”
Lillard not looking to leave
Trail Blazers three-time All-star Damian Lillard said he wasn’t looking to leave Portland.
“I’m not unhappy,” he said. “I love where I live. I love the organization. I love our coaching staff. I love where I am. Like I said last year, it’s the urgency I want, to make those steps in the right direction so we can compete. You’ve got people out here going all out to try to make it happen. I just want us to do the same thing, and I feel like we’re trying to do that.”
Lillard was at the Thomas & Mack Center watching the Blazers’ Summer League team.
He said he was happy with a draft that produced Anfernee Simons in the first round and Gary Trent Jr. in the second. The Blazers acquired Trent in a trade with the Sacramento Kings.
But Lillard acknowledged the difficulty of signing free agents, especially in the loaded Western Conference.
“Obviously, it’s not like we’re a destination,” Lillard said. “I think once people come to Portland, a lot of my teammates I’ve had come and go, they realize it’s a much better city than they thought it would be. They see it’s raining all the time when they come and go. They don’t see the summers. They don’t see the good days. It’s tough to attract players to want to come here.”
Doncic not cleared to play
Mavericks first-round pick Luka Doncic was not dressed to play Sunday against Milwaukee, missing what Dallas owner Mark Cuban hoped would be his debut.
Doncic has yet to sign a contract with the Mavericks after they made a draft-day trade with Atlanta and he was selected No. 3 overall. He needs to pass a physical and receive clearance from FIBA before he can sign.
“TBD,” Mavericks summer league coach Jamahl Mosely said with a grin.