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Standouts from the OKC Thunder’s first two Summer League games

By Albert Dadson

LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 7: Rashawn Thomas #40 of the Oklahoma City Thunder shoots the ball against the Brooklyn Nets during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League on July 7, 2018 at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 7: Rashawn Thomas #40 of the Oklahoma City Thunder shoots the ball against the Brooklyn Nets during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League on July 7, 2018 at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The OKC Thunder’s NBA Summer League roster is a talented one that could provide players that can provide depth for the bench in the upcoming season.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were not a good team when Carmelo Anthony, Paul George and Russell Westbrook were not in the game. In the 2018 NBA Draft, the OKC Thunder decided to get players that could help them with that problem.

Those players, combined with the players that were primary players with the OKC Blue, the Thunder’s G-League team, are giving the Thunder the opportunity to fix the team’s depth problems from within.

The first player is Daniel Hamilton. Hamilton likes to bring the ball up and go coast to coast. He has good ball-handling for a small forward and he has a quick first step.

Hamilton cannot shoot 3s very well. In the G League last season, he shot 28 percent from downtown but he was still able to average 16.1 points per game, 9.0 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game.

(Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images) /

His ability to fill up the stat sheet is Hamilton’s best quality that he brings to a basketball team. In the team’s first Summer League game against the Charlotte Hornets, he put up 11 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. In the second game against the Brooklyn Nets he put up 12 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

Hamilton can be a good two-way player also. He averaged 1.1 steals a game in the G League last year.

The next player is Dakari Johnson. Last year Johnson averaged 20 and 10 in 10 games in the G League. His exact numbers were 23.3 points per game with 10.3 rebounds per game, and he also averaged 1.3 blocks per game during his time with the Blue.

Johnson has showed no signs of slowing down in the Summer League. His strength and bulldozing post moves proved to be a force to be reckoned with. In the game against Charlotte, he scored 20 points and recorded eight rebounds.

In the second game against Brooklyn, he put up 11 points, six rebounds and five assists. If the Thunder are looking for an offensive option at center or if Nerlens Noel goes down at any point in the season, which is always a possibility, Johnson could be a great backup option.

The next player is Rashawn Thomas. He is a face-up post player that plays the power forward position. he has good ball control when he puts the ball on the floor in the post, which is hard to do.

He can put points up in bunches with his quick first step and this has been the case in Summer League in the first two games.

Last season in the G League, he put up 13.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He also averaged 1.5 steals per game, which helps his case for being a two-way player.

(Photo by Bart Young/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Bart Young/NBAE via Getty Images) /

In the first game against Charlotte, he put up 23 points and four steals. In the second game, he was not needed as much as the Thunder blew out the Nets 90-76. Thomas only scored eight points, but had 11 rebounds.

Another player that impressed in the game against the Nets was Hamidou Diallo. The most impressive thing he did was shoot the 3 and shoot it efficiently. Diallo is known as an athlete, but he made both of his attempts from 3-point range.

Diallo had 19 points and eight rebounds in the blowout win against Brooklyn. Diallo could be a player to watch for the Thunder with his ability to drive and cut for easy baskets.

Next: 2018 NBA free agency tracker: Grades for every deal so far

The first round pick of 2017, Terrance Ferguson, has not been able to have a great game yet, but there are still opportunities for him to bounce back. Ferguson is starting, so that means the Thunder are trying to get him the best opportunity and as many chances as possible to develop.

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