It took a while, but an honest-to-goodness basketball game broke out between the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers at the 2016 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas on Saturday.
And no, it wasn’t Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram, the top two picks in this year’s draft, who had the final words at the Thomas & Mack Center. Instead, a 70-69 Lakers win came down to a stirring comeback capped off by a back-and-forth between two sophomores.
With eight seconds left, D’Angelo Russell gave L.A. its first tie since the opening tip on a jumper that put the score at 67-all. While Russell celebrated his clutch bucket, TJ McConnell, Philly’s second-year point guard out of Arizona, rushed down the other way to give the Sixers the lead again at 69-67.
Then, on a play drawn up by Lakers summer league coach Jesse Mermuys, Russell stepped back for a deep three to give his squad its first, last and only lead of the night.
“I played like s--t,” Russell told ESPN’s J.A. Adande on air, Larry Nance Jr. in ...
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Article written by Josh Martin