A much more exciting day of action lord ahead for Illinois fans at the NBA 2K24 Summer League. Featuring three former Illini tipping-off within two hours of one another, five years of combined time in orange and blue will be on display.
Alan Griffin, member of Illinois men’s basketball from 2017-19, and the Milwaukee Bucks will start the day at 5:00 p.m. CT with a game against the Brooklyn Nets. Through two outings, the Bucks are undefeated but head coach Adrian Griffin has unfortunately not found any minutes for his eldest son. Milwaukee plays in the smaller of host UNLV’s active arenas, Cox Pavilion and will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU.
Just 30 minutes after that game is underway, one-year Illini Matthew Mayer and the Houston Rockets will take the floor with the Oklahoma City Thunder on the opposite end. Similarly to Griffin, Mayer has yet to see the floor in any capacity through Houston’s first two games. There is an increased chance moving forward, however, as two spectacular nights from forwards Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason has prompted the Rockets to shut them down for the rest of Summer League.
That leaves a total of 89 minutes of Houston’s game one rotation missing, with No. 4 overall pick Amen Thompson also out with an ankle sprain, and 63 minutes of Houston’s game two rotation missing. Standing at 6’9 will allow Mayer to spend time as a forward on top of his listed position as a guard, assuming Houston decides to throw the Dallas native a bone during these extenuating circumstances.
Closing out the day for Illinois fans will be Tevian Jones, a two-year Illini who had an identical stay in Champaign-Urbana as Griffin. Unlike his day five peers, Jones has played a significant amount in both of the New Orleans Pelicans’ first two games. Through a combined 21 minutes of action, Jones has totaled nine points, one rebound, two assists, two steals and a block.
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Jones took just one official shot in his first outing, with a potential second ending in a foul that sent him to the line, but was significantly more active on the offensive end in game two. Putting up a total of eight shots, Jones may have only made two but at the very least both were from behind the arc and contributed to an efficient 50% mark from deep. The New Orleans Pelicans will tip off against the Phoenix Suns on ESPN2 at 7:00 p.m. CT as they look to secure a record of 2-1 in Summer League.
@blountco21
