Why It’s MAKE OR BREAK For LA Clippers’ Kobe Brown & Jordan Miller In NBA Summer League

Why It’s MAKE OR BREAK For LA Clippers’ Kobe Brown & Jordan Miller In NBA Summer League

On today’s show, we are in Las Vegas and we’re looking at what the main things to look for for this Clippers summer league are. Going to be talking about it all on today’s Lock On Clippers. You are Locked on Clippers, your daily Los Angeles Clippers podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. Ye sir, you were locking in with the clips. Thank you for making Locked on Clippers the first listen of your day, your team every day. I’m your host Darian Vizeri. Born and raised in LA and in my 20 or just finished my 20th season as a Clipper fan. Been covering the team for five years on my own YouTube channel, Dimeropper. And three years right here on the Locked On Podcast Network. Your team every day. Make sure you subscribe on YouTube and hit the notification bell. So every single time we post a video, you’re alerted. And of course, you can listen wherever you get your podcast. This episode is brought to you by Game Time. Game Time is the best place to get great deals last minute on tickets. Just download the Game Time app, create an account, and use code locked on NBA for $20 off your first purchase. Clipper Nation, we are right here, as you can see, if you’re watching on YouTube, in Las Vegas, baby, and I’m going to be talking about the vibes at Summer League in day one. But first, we’re going to be talking about who we’re looking at for our summer league roster. Who am I most fixated on? Who am I trying to see great things from? or who am I just trying to see if they’re NBA level players? So, let’s begin by talking about who I’m first looking at, and that is Jordan Miller and Kobe Brown. Jordan Miller and Kobe Brown are going to be entering their third seasons in the NBA. Jordan Miller just got waved by the Clippers, but I’m hearing and I heard yesterday that he will still be playing uh for our summer league roster today on Friday. So, we have a 7 o’clock game. This episode will be out before the game. So, 7 o’clock game against the Houston Rockets on ESPN and or sorry on NBA TV and ESPN Plus. That will be at 7:00 at the Cox Pavilion. I will be there in the media section for the first time during a Clipper game. But let’s talk about Jordan Miller, right? I’m just curious to see does he have a point to prove? You know, this is a guy who was phenomenal in summer league last year. So much so that we were all saying he should be getting rotation minutes. And for a while when we had some injuries, he was getting some rotation minutes. And he looked good until he didn’t quite look ready with his three-point shot, with his, you know, if you’re not hitting three-pointers and you’re not creating your own shot, you’re not going to play much in today’s NBA. You have to be some insane defender. And Jordan Miller is not that. You know, at least not now. He’s solid. He’s got good size, but he’s not that. So, he wasn’t quite ready to get into our rotation. Jordan Miller listed at 67. And last year for the San Diego Clippers, our G-League affiliate, he only played six games for them. And he averaged in the well, seven games total if you count the tip off tournament. But he averaged 24 and a half points a game to go along with five and a half rebounds on 51% shooting, which is amazing. Like those are great stats. But again, you know, one thing is we only went 12 and 22. Now, I don’t know how many of those games Jordan Miller played in, but we went 12 and 22. So, we weren’t a winning team. And Jordan Miller shot 29% from three. So, when we’re looking at what skills are translatable for him to get into the rotation with our our main Clippers team, our our actual team, his open threes need to be better because when you got a Bogdanovich, you got a James Harden, you got Kawhi Leonard, if it’s a Zubots, these are all guys that right now as we speak, you give them the ball, they can make things happen at a much higher level than Jordan Miller can. And that’s experience and skill, you know, incorporated in that. But 24 and a half points is nothing to scoff at. Like that’s a real thing. I’m just curious to see if Jordan Miller has that fire. That’s like, I just got waved. I’m about to show you guys I’m the nicest player on this team. So, I’m going to be really looking at that today and during this summer league campaign. Now, as far as Kobe Brown, he’s a guy who has gotten more minutes, especially that first season, like 2023 24 is rookie season. He got some more minutes for us. Of course, Kobe Brown was actually a first round selection. A 30th pick overall in 2023, 67, which would be the height of a small forward, you know, about 10 even I don’t want to say 10 years ago, but about eight years ago. I mean, small forwards are still 67, but you weren’t playing power forwards that were 67 uh pre, you know, four out, one in NBA. So, Kobe Brown is a little undersized. People were saying, why can’t Kobe Brown be that fourman that we’re missing? He’s a little undersized. And again, it’s a three-point shot. You know, you look at his numbers in the 84 games he’s played as a professional for our LA Clippers. He’s shot 29% his rookie year from three and 23% his rookie year, I’m sorry, his sophomore year this past season. So, yes, he’s not getting real minutes. You know, nine minutes a game the first year and seven minutes a game the second year. He’s not getting consistent run like that. So, it’s hard to make these assessments, but you know, in summer league, he’s had some good showings last year, but again, it’s different when the bright lights of the NBA come on. and Kobe Brown and Jordan Miller, despite being more experienced guys who spent multiple years in college and have a good feel for the game and great maturity, at the end of the day, if they’re not going to make open threes off of Kawhi Leonard and James Harden’s gravity, then they’re not going to break into the rotation anytime soon. So, and Kobe Brown’s not a self-creator really either. I like his strength. He’s got actually he’s an underrated passer, but I’m looking at it this way. Kobe Brown has to perform or he won’t be an NBA player or a Clipper for that much longer. He’s got it’s put up or shut up. I mean, he played five games last season and for the uh San Diego Clippers, six if you count the tip off tournament. He averaged 19 points, six rebounds, and three assists on 4429 73 splits. So again, the efficiency is not great. He is averaging 19 points though. I’ll give him that. But that matters a little bit. So this for me I’m looking at as like it’s your third year playing summer league for both of them. They got to perform. They got to stand out because if they’re not standing out, I don’t think Jordan Miller is going to get picked back. Like we’ll see because the Clippers still have some two-way contracts to give out. But I’m just looking at are they able to stay in the NBA? because if they’re not, then that would mean that the Clippers had a couple of fumbled picks yet again. But I’m rooting for them, of course. I’m absolutely rooting for them. But I’m looking to see, has Jordan Miller’s jump shot gotten better? Has his handle gotten better? Is he playing he’s a little shiftier? Have a little more wiggle in his game. Same with Kobe Brown. You know, he’s a big body. He’s not really the shiftiest guy. You know, does he have a post game? Now, I’m going to be looking at all these things. So Jordan Miller, Kobe Brown are for me who I’m looking at as this is kind of the last chance. Like you got to show us that you are something or else the NBA I don’t know how much longer they’re going to be in it and it sucks. It’s a really hard business. It’s much harder to stay in the league than it is to make the league. Some people say I don’t know how true that is cuz I mean I’ve never stayed in the league but I know how hard it is to make the NBA and I wasn’t even close. So and I had those dreams as a kid like everybody else. So it’s hard to make the league. you need to hit the genetic lottery, but then it’s a different ballgame when it comes to when you’re in the league and it’s hard to stay in it. But coming up, going to be talking about which new players I am excited to see for this Clippers summer league roster. Coming up, I got to tell you a little something about game time. There are so many times where I don’t know if I want to go to a game till the very last minute. And game time is the perfect place to get a good deal on tickets when you’re deciding last minute. I went to game one of the NLCS uh Dodgers and Mets last minute by myself cuz I didn’t know if anybody could go with me. And I’m like, damn, it’s the playoffs. It’s going to be really expensive. But game time got me a deal and got me in the ballpark for less than $200. I also did the same for the Clippers home opener last year before I was in the swell. So Game Time makes buying tickets fast and simple. Prices on the app actually drop the closer you get to the first pitch. So that makes it a lot easier. And they’ve got incredible last minute deals, clear seat views, and a lowest price guarantee that takes the worry out of buying. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create an account, and use code locked on NBA for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, create an account and redeem code L O C K E D O NA for $20 off. Download the Game Time app today. Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. All right. So, back here in Las Vegas talking about the new boys. Who I’m looking at besides Jordan Miller and Kobe Brown to make an impact. Well, let’s talk about last year’s picks. Cam Christie, you know, the brother of Max Christie who is really showing that he is an NBA player and might have a very solid NBA career. He was showing signs of the Lakers and then he got traded to the Dallas Mavericks and was looking really good with the Dallas Mavericks. I saw him yesterday watching the Dallas Mavericks, the Cooper Flag game. By the way, a vlog of that game is on my channel right now. It was awesome. Bronny James Cooper Flag. I know it’s not Clipper related, but really great buzz in the building. But you better believe that Max Christie is going to be watching Cam Christie today courtside. And so I’m going to be excited to see that. And Cam Christie last year for the San Diego Clippers averaged 18 points a game to go along with four and a half rebounds and two assists and a steal on 4132 79 splits. So here’s the thing about that. The thing that stuck out to me about Cam Christie when we picked him is he’s an actual young player. He’s turning 20 in 13 days. So, he’s significantly younger than me. Um, which just sounds insane to say just given that like I’m not used to this being older than NBA players thing really still. But he’s 6’5. He’s got long arms and he’s got a lot of growing room. So, even if let’s say he doesn’t kill it at summer league, he, you know, I don’t think he’s going anywhere. But here’s my thing with Cam. He’s got a really pretty looking shot. The form is there, but the results haven’t quite been. He shot 29% from the field last year in his 13 games. Of course, a lot of those came in garbage time, almost all of them last year for the Clippers, but 29% from the field, 15 from three, and then in the GLeague last year, he had a much bigger sample size than Jordan Miller and Kobe Brown. He played a total of 40 games. And in the regular season, he shot 41% and 32 from three. Now, granted, eight out of his 16 shots on average are threes, so true shooting percentage would be a better gauge, but if you’re shooting 32% from three, I’m not sure how good your true shooting percentage is going to be. So, that’s the thing with Cam. He’s got a prettyl looking shot, but eventually you got to see the ball go through the basket. So, that’s what I’m going to be looking at with Cam. Can his efficiency be better? Because if he’s not efficient, he’s not gonna get minutes. I think he’s got defensive capabilities. I mean, I don’t know about as good as Max Christie because Max Christie can really guard. At one point last season, I’d say he was the best point of attack defender on the Lakers, which was not saying anything. And by the way, for those of you that are saying like I saw some people talking about going back to the Bradley Beal discussion, like you know, Darian, like you know, your your basketball lens is not the end- all beall. Absolutely, it’s not the end all beall. But here’s what I will tell you. No serious team in today’s NBA does not start a good point of attack defender. And the Lakers were one of them. And they got smacked in the first round embarrassed because they didn’t have one. They didn’t. They had Austin Reeves, Luca, LeBron, Jackson Hayes, and Ruie Hachimura. Which one of those guys is going to slow down Anthony Edwards? They had Austin freaking Reeves guarding him to start games. So, no, just putting a bunch of offense guys out there is not going to be the the solution in my opinion. Now, I could be wrong, but I’m not going to be wrong because I’m talking about like serious title contenders and we’re not going to be doing that. So, especially if we start Bradley Beal, by the way, still waiting on the news with that. No buyout with Phoenix or anything yet. But anyway, back to what matters right now, which is summer league. That’s what I’m looking for with Cam. Do I see any route for Cam, Jordan, and Kobe to get into the rotation this year? probably not, but because we’re not prioritizing young guys, but hopefully he can show us something. Maybe Cam Christiey’s, remember, he’s 19. Maybe he’s improved his game off the bounce. Maybe he tries to show some self-creation in the summer league. But for me, the main thing I’m looking at is his results shooting the basketball. That’s really what I’m looking at. And then we’ve got Trenton Flowers who showed some real good stuff for our summer league, I’m sorry, for our G-League team last year. 20 games 27 games played in the regular season and then 15 games played in the tipoff tournament. So that gives him a total of 42 games. And in the regular season, because the stats are separate, I wish I could just combine them, but the stats, he averaged 20 points a game, five rebounds, two assists on 47, 37, 76 and a half splits. So those are the best splits. If we’re talking three ball, twos, and free throws of all the guys I’ve mentioned so far, Trenton Flowers, and if you’re unfamiliar with his game, he’s a very good athlete. He’s I mean, let’s see how much he’s played in the NBA. He’s 6’7, undrafted, and played one season last year, played only six games for us. And you know, I’m not even going to read his stats because it’s not relevant. You know, six games, four and a half minutes. But those summer league, I keep saying summer league. Those G-League numbers are very relevant. 20 points, five rebounds on 47, 37, 76 and a half splits. So 37% from three on five and a half attempts per game and 47% from the field. I’m not saying he’s gonna get into the rotation for the Clippers this year if he plays well at summer league. But if he shows us something at summer league, let’s say Trenton Flowers shows, hey, I might be better than Jordan Miller. I might be better than Kobe Brown. Maybe he’s someone that we look at to keep on the roster for the post Kawawaii era. I don’t know. We all want young players, right? All the Clipper fans, the locals, we want more young players. It’s not going to happen this year, but when we’re building for the future, if Trenton Flowers is really like that, we’ll see a little bit more in this summer league. So, I just want to see is his three-point shooting as good at what this as what these numbers are saying. And how does he look better than Jordan Miller and Kobe Brown? That’s what I’m looking at. You know, he’s a good athlete. He shot four and in the tipoff tournament, which was 15 games, he averaged 145 and two on 49 4369 split. So, the free throw shooting is not that great there, but 43% from three. That definitely makes you, you know, curious like maybe this guy is the real deal. And then, of course, there’s the guy that we don’t have much data on at all yet, and that’s Yannik Conanneerhouser. I am going to be very excited to see him and Kobe Sanders today. in terms of Kobe Sanders, a lot of size, some playmaking ability, you know, will he be running the point? Will he be setting up the offense? Are they going over screens on pick and roll? Because if they’re just going under the screen, then, you know, to be an elite pick and roll player today, you either have to be really quick, a really good passer, or they have to go over the screen. If you’re not a very good passer because like guys like Rondo, John Wall, they were very quick and they were great passers. So even though teams were going and Westbrook so even though teams were going under the screen with them and in terms of Wall and Westbrook just freak athletes too if you’re going under the screen with them you know John Waldo had a decent 18-footer for a while he did with Washington but and Westbrook had a mid-range for a while too but they’re so fast and they’re such good passers. I’m talking about a guy Kobe Sanders who’s proven absolutely nothing so far. So, let’s see. You know, as far as his playmaking, I’m curious to see what he can do. So, I’m I’m going to be looking for that. With Kobe Sanders, his size, can it translate to the NBA? Is his athleticism good enough for the NBA? And then with co Yannik, his shot blocking, his size, his athleticism. We obviously know he’s a very raw prospect, but is he somebody that you’re saying, “Oh, he’s getting a double double. He’s catching lobs. he might be able to play real minutes if Brook Lopez or Zubots goes down for any point of the season because I don’t think they’re both going to play 80 games. So, I’m really looking forward to Kobe Sanders, Trenton Flowers, Yannik Conan Neerhouser. For Trenton Flowers, can he knock down open shots for Cam Christie? And and with Trenton Flowers, is he actually better than some of these guys we talk about more with Yannik? Just how big of a presence is he making? You know, what does he look like? I’ve never seen him play a full game. Same with Kobe Sanders. You know, can team are teams going over screens with him? And if they’re going under, is he making them pay with the jumper? And then of course with the other guy in name, who was it? Cam Christie knocking down shots at an efficient clip. His form is beautiful, but you got to eventually put the ball in the basket if you’re going to be a role player in this league. Coming up though, going to be talking about the general vibes of summer league, what you can expect if you come here. And there’s still time for you, Clipper Nation, to get down here, say hi to your boy, and see what the hype is all about. going to be talking about what I experienced yesterday coming up. All right, so here in Las Vegas, I got here at 9:00 a.m. yesterday, tired as hell. Spent the whole night, the previous night, like packing, doing some errands. So, I didn’t even sleep. You know, I pulled an allnighter. And I don’t pull all nighters frequently. I just have a terrible sleeping schedule since, you know, I lost my uh day job with my dad’s office burning down. But I just got here, took like a three-hour nap. I would have slept for eight hours if I hadn’t put an alarm on, but I was like, you know what? Best case scenario, I’m a little tired. We do the summer league things. If I don’t have the legs and the endurance to go out, then I sleep at a reasonable hour and then I wake up feeling fresh as a daisy for a real day today. And that’s exactly what’s happened. I actually went to sleep at midnight like a normal human being and woke up at 8:30 like a normal human being. So maybe my sleep schedule is back on track. But you better believe we’re going to be out late tonight on Friday. Hell yeah. So anyway, and dude, I I know I’ve probably mentioned this a 100 times, but this is literally my first time in Vegas since I turned 15. So it basically might be my first time. It might might as well be my first time in Vegas. But anyway, so there’s the vibes at Summer League. First off, it’s really hot. That goes without saying. Secondly, Thomas and Max Center is really cool. I think it’s a nice college arena. No bad seat in the building. There’s a lot of history there. You know, the ‘ 07 All-Star game, the legendary run of the UNLV running Rebels with Jerry Tarcan in the ‘9s. You know, a lot of great things happened in that building. So, it was really cool for me to see that for the first time. and the Cox Pavilion, the practice facility, is literally right there in the building. So, you can just walk around at concessions and go to the other stadium and watch the other game. So, there’s essentially two games going on simultaneously. So, you can just pop in and out. And it’s so cool. And when you’re at the Cox Pavilion, it’s literally like you’re at a high school or like a, you know, lower level, like mid- major college game where there’s everyone’s like staring at you in the bleachers as you’re walking by and, you know, it’s just crazy. You’ve got scouts sitting in the first two rows, team uh team personnel, agents, a lot of agents, you know, are out here. And the seats are reserved, so I don’t I don’t get to just plop next to them. But I’m going to see if I can sneak into this little sectioned off area that’s supposed to be only for uh scouts and agents and stuff cuz I’m trying to talk to some real basketball people out here, ladies and gentlemen. Like real basketball people. Not saying media people aren’t, but like people that are in organizations. So, and I talked to some yesterday. Obviously, got to talk to more, but a lot of them knew who I was. So, one big takeaway I’ I’ve had from this, you never know who’s listening, and you never know who’s seeing your tweets. I heard people saying that they listen to me from across the world yesterday. I couldn’t believe it. Like, I never realize how big my reach really is or the reach of Locked On really is. and then people telling me I see your tweets like that I would never know that are in organizations. So when people say certain things to me just know people in the NBA are seeing these things that I’m saying. So I never want to say I’m above anybody cuz I’m not. But like what if you think your opinion is so valid? Like why don’t you just like build a platform and get people listening? Like maybe you know what I’m saying. Why not? Why not if your opinion is so great? My opinion is not great. It’s not. People just listen. doesn’t mean what I’m saying is accurate. But if you want to challenge me and say that nobody cares or nobody listens, it’s not true. Factually untrue. But here’s my thing, right? So that Cox Pavilion, it’s a really interesting place to watch a game because you’re so close. I saw our good old friend Glenn Rivers sitting courtside yesterday and Andre Miller, um, who’s not as beloved in Clipperland, but I don’t know how beloved Glenn Rivers is in Clipperland anymore either. But anyway, it’s an amazing experience. I was sitting in the media section for the first time. Definitely a different world. Got to meet Tomare finally, our beat writer. He was a really chill guy. And you know, it’s just a different experience. You obviously can’t cheer, but I wasn’t going to cheer for the Lakers or the Mavs. You know, I didn’t care. But I did when when Cooper Flag had that dunk, I like almost jumped out of my seat and I had to really like reel it back in like, “Okay, I forgot I’m in the media section.” But like as a basketball fan, how could you just sit still when Cooper Flag is doing that dunk and you never seen him play like that? So, and by the way, I’m not anti- college basketball. I just didn’t have time. I love actually watching the college games. I actually feel like as a coach, I I learn more because it’s more applicable to youth levels. But anyway, it was sick. Like the Thomas and Max Center was packed to the brim. And in the media section, you just get to like meet a lot of people like, you know, I saw Law Murray there. I saw a bunch of people. So, it’s really cool. You know, got to see my boy Nick from Locked on Mavs. It’s awesome. So, it’s been a different experience. It’s been fun. on. I saw my boy BJ from the pull-up podcast that I had on the show. So, I know I’m going to see more people today and it’s going to be a really interesting experience for me. Not one that I envy at in it dome. At in it dome, I like being in the swell with my people and being loud, but I’m going to be really excited to be covering up front as a media member. My Clippers. So, it’s going to be really, really cool. So, guys, get over here at summer league. There’s no bad seat in the house. It’s it’s awesome. People are willing to talk for the most part. and I want to see if I can make even more connections, have some more conversations today. So, it’s going to be an exciting day. Let’s see how our boys come out. Got the Houston Rockets at 7 local time. You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram at Dime Dropper Pod. Subscribe to my own YouTube channel, Dimeropper, where vlogs of everything I’m attending will be posted. There’s already one out right now, so go check that out. And of course, this channel, Locked on Clippers, free and available wherever you get your podcast. Make sure you subscribe and hit the notification bell to know every single time we post a video. The views have been excellent the last couple of weeks. I appreciate all of you so much. Let’s get this thing to 8,000 subscribers before the season starts. I think with the we’re uh with the way we’re trending right now, it’s going to be that. But let’s keep going. We need to hit 10K and start passing teams up left and right cuz you already know that the Clipper fan base is the most underrated and most loyal fan base in the NBA. And to me, it’s not even a comparison with anyone else because we’re second tier in our own city. The age old proverb continues. Go Clippers.

Los Angeles Clippers Summer League preview: Who will shine in Vegas? Jordan Miller and Kobe Brown look to prove themselves as NBA-ready talents.

Die hard LA Clippers fan and Host Darian Vaziri breaks down the Clippers’ young prospects, including Cam Christie’s potential and what to expect from the new guys. Key discussions revolve around improving three-point shooting efficiency and translating G League performance to the NBA level. Vaziri shares his firsthand experience at Summer League, offering unique insights into the atmosphere and networking opportunities in Las Vegas.

Tune in to discover which Clippers youngsters could make a splash and potentially crack the rotation in the upcoming season.

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