Guest Post: Chicago Bulls Las Vegas Summer League Player Grades

Jul 15, 2013; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Marquis Teague, center, is congratulated by Bulls guard Tony Snell, left, and forward Erik Murphy after Snell was awarded a free throw against the Denver Nuggets during an NBA Summer League game at the Thomas and Mack Center. Also pictured is Bulls forward Malcolm Thomas at far right. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

(Editor’s note: The following is a guest post by friend of the site Brian Schroeder, who writes for Hardwood Paroxysm and is currently in Las Vegas covering the summer league.)

After suffering their first loss of Vegas Summer League at the worst possible time, the Bulls will play one more consolation game tomorrow to wrap up their Vegas trip. Their 68-62 loss to the Heat, who move on to play the Cavaliers in the quarterfinals, was characterized by a lack of defensive rotation and timely shotmaking. It wasn’t all bad. Here are some grades.

Malcolm Thomas: B-

Thomas was his usual active self, grabbing 13 rebounds on the night, 3 of them offensive. He had a lot of trouble keeping possession after his hands dropped below his waist, though, which is a potential red flag in his NBA future. He didn’t shoot or score very much, and had a few shots rejected by equally athletic Miami bigmen. The lack of polish in his offensive game really hurt him tonight.

Erik Murphy: D+

Murphy played hard, but wasn’t much of a factor tonight. He didn’t get many shots, and even fewer rebounds. It’s not that he doesn’t try, it’s that he just can’t do it. This isn’t to say he can’t be an NBA player, but if he’s not getting shots off, he’s not going to be a whole lot of use this season.

Tony Snell: B

Snell is, as advertised, incredible to watch in person. He’s long, athletic and very mobile defensively. While his purported lack of aggression seems to be less burdensome and more just good basketball IQ, it does seem as though he’s not ever going to be a guy who carries your team. He’ll definitely make the swing pass to that guy, though. As far as this game went, Snell was all over the boards, but after hitting his first three, settled down to go 1-7 the rest of the way.

Andrew Goudelock: F

Goudelock’s been relevatory thus far in Summer League, but when the Bulls needed a victory the most, he had a bad game. This is not to say he’s an “unclutch” player or anything, just that he had a bad game. Hence, an F. Not really much else to say about it.

Marquis Teague: A-

Teague was, after a shaky first half, by far the best player on the floor for Chicago. After having many of his driving lanes cut off or otherwise unavailable for a quarter and a half. Then, almost as if a switch had been thrown, he started finding seams and getting to the rim seemingly at will. Finishing with 21 points, 3 boards and 2 assists on 5-11 shooting, Teague kept the Bulls in a game they probably shouldn’t have been in.

Andy Rautins: C-

Despite being blown by a few times en route to easy layups for the signifcantly more athletic Heat squad, Rautins played decently, finishing with 7 points on 3-8 shooting. Not much else to say, besides the fact that his 1-5 performance from deep belied how good he was at working for those open shots against a Heat squad that was playing to take away the jumper most of the evening.

Deon Thompson: C+

Essentially the only player on this team who ever really tries any back to the basket moves, Thompson availed himself well as an undersized big and paint protector. He found himself in good position for a number of rebounds he probably shouldn’t have gotten, and for awhile was the only Bulls player boxing out defensively. He finished with 6 points, 8 rebounds and a block.

Matt Janning: INC

Matthew Bryan-Amaning: INC

Kyle Gibson: INC