Blazers look to make history in Summer League finals

No. 16 seed Portland, with a win, will be the lowest seed to ever win the Summer League finals. But, if the No. 15 seed Lakers win, then they will earn that honor.

Blazers beat reporter Casey Holdahl dropped this tidbit the morning of the Summer League finals:

Now, winning Summer League isn’t a big deal. The team that wins the tournament isn’t guaranteed any type of success in the upcoming regular season.

Last season’s champion, the Bulls, won the same amount of games (41) as Portland last year. Sacramento won in 2014, and then went on to a 29-53 record that season.

The play of Summer League doesn’t mean too much. Recent MVPs like Josh Selby, Glen Rice Jr. and Kyle Anderson are not making an impact in the NBA.

But, sometimes, what a player flashes in Summer League is a precursor to the regular season. Portland’s own Damian Lillard took home co-MVP with Selby in 2012, and the Blazer guard later went on to win the Rookie of the Year, make two All-Star teams and two All-NBA teams.

It’s good to remember many of the players in Summer League will not be in the NBA next season. So, the level of competition isn’t up to snuff.

Given the level of play, the inaccurate measurement of players and past champions not equaling success, some would say: why do we even play Summer League?

You know why? Because it’s fun.

It’s fun to watch Caleb Swanigan posting up player after player and shimmying into a fadeaway that he drains.

Watching Jorge Gutiérrez drop dime after dime is a joy:

Seeing Antonius Cleveland, a player I irrationally liked at first, blossom as he gets extended playing time is thrilling.

And that’s not to say anything of R.J. Hunter draining threes, Jake Layman dunking hard and Jarnell Stokes hustling his way into a possible NBA camp invite (or even contract).

It all comes down to this

It’s been a wild Summer League for Portland. After finishing preliminary play 1-2, losing two straight, they looked gone.

Then the No. 16 seed beat the Bulls, top-seeded Raptors, the Spurs led by Vegas’ top scorer Bryn Forbes, undefeated Memphis and now is on the doorstep of a title.

They’ll go through an insane Lakers squad to do so. Lonzo Ball is the main component, but he’s out with injury potentially.

Still, guard Alex Caruso just led a comeback and turned it into a two-way contract. Kyle Kuzma is showing his shooting performance at the combine will translate to the NBA. Thomas O’Bryant is proving he’s worth the second round investment.

Brandon Ingram’s on the team, too, and he dominated when playing. But he’s been held out since early in Summer League with injury, and won’t return.

Next: Blazers looking to acquire Carmelo Anthony

The game should be scrappy, sloppy and nowhere near an NBA game. But that’s the fun it.

Catch the Summer League finals on ESPN Monday night at 7 PM PST.