NBA Summer League can establish nobodies as legitimate players.
The last few years saw Josh Hart and Cam Thomas emerge from being late first-round picks to then winning NBA Summer League MVP and becoming viable NBA starters.
The 2025 NBA Summer League may put some under-the-radar players on similar paths. Everyone knows about Cooper Flagg and other lottery picks, whether they were drafted this year or previously, but these are some of the lesser-known Summer Leaguers who could make impacts in the NBA very shortly.
Jaylon Tyson, Cleveland Cavaliers
A 2024 first-round pick, Tyson saw inconsistent playing time as a rookie with the 64-win Cavs. However, he displayed his full bag in Vegas Summer League as the only player to average at least 6.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists. He also dropped 19.7 points per game and showed an all-around game that was also on display while at Cal in 2023-24, when he ranked in the top 10 of the Pac-12 in points, rebounds and assists.With Darius Garland (toe surgery) likely to start the season sidelined, and with one fewer wing in front of him following the trade of Isaac Okoro, Tyson could see meaningful minutes this year and become a contributor to more than just Cleveland’s Summer League team.
Kyle Filipowski, Utah Jazz
The former Duke star averaged about the same in the G-League (9.2 points) as he did with Utah (9.6) as a rookie last year. Thus, his true breakout came in Las Vegas as Filipowski was named the Vegas Summer League MVP after topping all scorers with 29.3 points. He certainly took advantage of the rule where players can’t foul out until they reach 10 fouls, as Filipowski averaged 6.0 fouls per game, but he showed great scoring chops for a former second-round pick.The Jazz also participate in the Salt Lake City Summer League, and while Filipowski wasn’t as potent with points in that, he did lead the league with 11.3 rebounds. The Jazz had a pretty substantial roster makeover, jettisoning vets John Collins, Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton. They appear ready to turn the page and give young guys like Filipowski the chance to translate their exhibition success into production in games that count.
Quincy Olivari, Brooklyn Nets
Olivari has all of two games of NBA action under his belt, courtesy of 10 minutes played with the Lakers last season, as he signed with Brooklyn’s Summer League squad just days before the tournament began. He was always known as a knockdown three-point shooter, leading both Conference USA, with Rice in 2020-21, and the Big East, with Xavier in 2023-24, in three-point percentage. However, the Atlanta native put on a clinic in getting to the line in Sin City. His 9.7 free-throw attempts per game were the second-most of the competition, and that’s a skill that the Nets, or anyone else, could use.Brooklyn has five first-round rookies this year, but it was Olivari, an undrafted second-year player, who grabbed the attention of not only Nets personnel, but those on other teams as well.
Hansen Yang, Portland Trail Blazers
Drafted No. 16 overall, Yang spent the last two years playing professionally in his native China. He was the Chinese Basketball Association’s defensive player of the year last season and ranked fifth in the Las Vegas Summer League with 2.3 blocks. Yang, however, is more than just a defense-only big who’s a liability on the other end as his playmaking chops were on display in Summer League. His 3.8 assists were the most among 7-footers and he was the only player to average at least three assists and two blocks per game. Having a multi-skilled big will be a nice change of pace for Portland after two years of one-dimensional play from Deandre Ayton.David Jones Garcia, San Antonio Spurs
A well-traveled Dominican who attended three colleges, Jones Garcia went undrafted in 2024 and spent the entire year in the G-League. He has since signed a two-way deal with the Spurs after highly prolific stints in both Vegas and at the California Classic. Jones Garcia, who shot a horrendous 32.5 percent on three-pointers in college, apparently reformed his shot as he knocked down 51 percent from beyond the arc in Summer League. That came on 51 attempts, a hefty sample size.
There is always a premium on shooting in the NBA, no matter the team. Expect Jones Garcia to see lots of time with the parent club with his two-way deal, in which he can play up to 50 games with the Spurs next season.
Baylor Scheierman, Boston Celtics
A week after Boston won the 2024 NBA championship, it took Scheierman with the final draft pick of the first round. He saw spot duty as a rookie, but given the departures and injuries that the Celtics recently suffered, Scheierman is in line to be a rotation player next season. His efficiency is what stands out—he ranked fifth in Vegas with 6.8 assists, while his 1.8 turnovers was 138th among players.Boston ranked third in assist-to-turnover ratio a year ago, so it clearly values players like Scheierman. But the former South Dakota State and Creighton star will need to hone his outside shot to truly endear himself to Joe Mazzulla. Scheierman converted on just 27.4 percent of three-pointers in Vegas after knocking down 39 percent in college.
