SALT LAKE CITY — Ah, summer league.
It's a time to watch the fresh faces and the unknowns of the league battle it out. For some, that battle is for their NBA lives, while for others, it’s just a chance to try out some newly learned skills.
Tuesday’s edition of the Utah Jazz Summer League may have produced a smaller crowd (9,408), but it may have had more energy.
Here are some of the things that caught our attention.
#ReturnofAB
During Utah's 72-70 win over the San Antonio Spurs Tuesday night, current Jazzmen Derrick Favors, Elijah Millsap, Rudy Gobert, Alec Burks, Trevor Booker and the newly signed Trey Lyles sat behind the Utah bench. Raul Neto, who appears to be on the verge of signing, was also among the group.
Most of the night was full of smiles and laughs, but things really got fun when Burks ventured to the other side of the court to answer some questions on the official Jazz Twitter account.
Burks and Gobert got into a Twitter exchange (argument?) about whether or not Burks posterized The Stifle Tower in practice, which Deseret News Jazz beat writer Jody Genessy chronicles here. The two didn't seem to come to an agreement, so after the game, Rodney Hood weighed in on the supposed incident.
“(Burks) caught somebody,” Hood remembered. “I don’t know if it was Rudy ... that would be a sight to see. Alec can get up there. Rudy, of course, can block shots. We’ll see that in practice one day.”
Jack Cooley, new fan favorite
It may sound overly simple, but to make it in the NBA a player usually must have at least one elite skill. Jazz forward Jack Cooley may just have one, and the fans at summer league are falling for it.
The thick-shouldered Cooley is a menace on the boards. He bowls over opposing players, uses his wide body to box out and goes all out for every rebound.
Late in the game, Cooley was surrounded by three Spurs players and somehow managed to beat them all to an offensive rebound. A foul was soon called on San Antonio, and during the dead ball, the crowd gave the loudest cheer of the night up to that point and started yelling, “Cooo.”
That same cheer returned each time Cooley was involved in a play.
Those weren’t boos, Jack.
Close games get real — almost
Summer league is usually greeted with a light-hearted atmosphere. Sure, fans want to see their team win, but the win-loss record is often secondary to individual performances — that is until it’s crunch time in a close game.
Down the stretch, as the Jazz and Spurs fought in a one-possession game the crowd grew louder and more tense.
With just over four seconds remaining and the Jazz up by two, the Spurs called a timeout to set up one last chance to tie the game or take the lead. During the stoppage, the crowd stood to its feet — just like a regular-season game — and remained standing right up to when Kyle Anderson’s last-second shot fell off the rim, preserving the Jazz victory.
Not signed, not famous — yet
Neto, who the Jazz drafted in the second round of the 2013 draft, is in town and according to a report by David Pick, he could be here to stay.
Pick tweeted that Neto’s coach in Spain informed Pick that the Brazilian point guard will be signed by the Jazz. That signing hasn’t taken place yet, and the fresh-faced Neto isn’t quite famous here in Utah.
After the game, as the Jazz were walking off the court, a security guard asked where Neto's pass was. Neto quickly pointed to his (future?) teammates and said, “I’m with them.”