LAS VEGAS — Keaton Wagler looked headed for a second straight forgettable Las Vegas Summer League performance.

The fifth pick in June’s NBA Draft, Wagler took just seven shots en route to a quiet seven-point performance Thursday against the Sacramento Kings. Three days later, the LA Clippers’ highest draft pick in 17 years missed six of seven first-half shots against the Utah Jazz.

But Wagler was “aggressive from the start” on Sunday, and that early aggression was rewarded in the third quarter when he scored as many points (18) as the entire Jazz team. Wagler hit shots after off-ball screens and got to his spots for pull-ups. He and Darryn Peterson, the No. 2 pick in the draft, both finished with game highs of 23 points, but Wagler’s Clippers got a 104-82 win.

“It kind of just gives me that thought in the back of my mind of like, you know, I can still do this at this level,” Wagler told The Athletic following his breakout performance Sunday. “Like, I knew. I knew that I could play that way and that it would come. But you know, just being able to do that after the last game … I would say it’s more of a confidence boost than anything.”

That could be a boon for the Clippers if maintained properly. Wagler’s skill set suggests he has a high floor as a 6-foot-5 guard capable of playing multiple positions. But his teammate at Illinois, Kylan Boswell, who is signed to a two-way contract with the Charlotte Hornets, thinks there is a notable ceiling for Wagler to reach, as well.

“Keaton will be a superstar for that team,” Boswell told The Athletic. “All the GMs and the front office, they know. There’s a reason they (took) him at five. They can see the future and the situation that they’re building.

“His style of game reminds me a lot like Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander). It’s kind of crazy to say, but I feel it can pan out to be that type of elevation in his game. He’s just very calm; he’s always balanced with himself. He always gets to spots with shots that he likes. … It’s just gonna take time for him. I feel like hitting the weight room will be huge for him. But overall, you gotta let a superstar grow into a superstar.”

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Wagler is a part of one of the 21st century’s more stacked guard classes. Peterson was taken second in what many considered an above-average draft, with Wagler, Mikel Brown Jr., Darius Acuff Jr., Kingston Flemings and Brayden Burries all selected in the top 10. Brown wound up watching Acuff and Wagler play against each other in the Clippers-Sacramento Kings summer-league game, while Acuff watched part of the Clippers-Jazz game that featured Wagler and Peterson.

“I think it’s honestly super cool being a part of this class,” Wagler said before his first game against the Kings. “It is one of the best classes that we’ve seen — all the different guards. I mean, everyone is dynamic in their own ways. It’s cool to see how each person fits in with each team and how they play. It’s really cool to see that.

“Getting to go against some of the guards this week during summer league will be good, a good test for me. Just getting out there to, you know, get going and kind of get my feet under me. … It’s summer league, but I’m still going to take it serious and do my best out there.”

Wagler, however, is an anomaly among those top-10 guards. He was the only one of the six who wasn’t ranked in the top 15 of his class entering college, and he wasn’t ranked at all coming out of Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in Kansas. Wagler will also be the last of the six guards to turn 20, with his birthday not until February.

But that doesn’t mean Wagler didn’t think he could play at a high level.

“I think my junior year is when I really started to get a lot better. … My game just excelled in a big way,” he said. “I think I just took that with me everywhere I went. Those two last years of my high school, AAU and regular high school, I just played with a lot of confidence. … I didn’t really score that much in high school because of how good our team was. But AAU, I was like the main guy that would score the ball all the time. So, I think having those two different things really helped me work on my game in both ways. That’s kind of how I became the player that I am.”

One player Wagler faced before college was Flemings, the 2025 Texas Gatorade Player of the Year and a former college standout at Houston. Flemings’ last game with the Cougars was a Sweet 16 loss to Wagler’s Fighting Illini, who eventually advanced to the Final Four. Wagler and Flemings also worked out against each other for the Clippers in the pre-draft process.

Flemings told The Athletic that the guards atop the draft have a “mutual respect for each other,” even though “every single player is looking out for themselves, trying to get better every single day.”

“Me and Keaton are really cool, so we talk a lot,” Flemings said. “After Keaton beat me in college, he told me that we played against each other when we were younger. … Obviously, you know, a guy like that wasn’t highly touted coming into this season and really proved everyone wrong.”

Wagler really made himself comfortable once he got to Illinois to play for head coach Brad Underwood. The Fighting Illini had a decent 2024-25 season that featured a starting backcourt of 2025 first-round pick Kasparas Jakučionis and Boswell, a transfer from Arizona. Illinois coaches expected Wagler to be a redshirt candidate when he arrived on campus. Clippers basketball president Lawrence Frank said Boswell went to Underwood after summer ball and said of Wagler, “This dude’s really f—ing good. He’s really, really good. He’s a killer.”

Boswell, a senior entering the 2025-26 season, played Wagler one-on-one before the season. As a renowned defender with a strong body for a guard, Boswell tried to trash-talk Wagler. It didn’t work.

“Just tried to get him riled up, get him off his game,” Boswell said. “But just throughout that entire time of ones, he stayed composed. Right there, I was like, it wasn’t even about the talent. … Me knowing what I do best — guarding, getting in people’s heads, being a pest — it didn’t derail him in any kind of way. He just continued to stay himself.

“After that, that’s when I went to Brad and told him that, yeah, he’s going to be legit for us.”

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Wagler’s athletic profile has been a topic of interest ever since he established himself on the scene. His youthful appearance and lithe frame belie what he can do to be successful on the court.

“I’ve always kind of been looked at as someone who’s, like, smaller … skinnier and more slim than others,” said Wagler, who’s up to nearly 190 pounds after adding roughly 20 since the college season ended. “Obviously a baby face, but I didn’t really care about that. I kind of just know the player that I am. So, I went out there and played each game like how I always do. And then, I think that killer mentality is something that I’ve had, just going out each game wanting to win.”

Wagler also had no dunks at Illinois, but he told The Athletic that he is going to try to get one during summer league.

“I gotta show people that I can dunk, and that it’s not a thing I can’t do,” Wagler said. “So, we’ll see if I get one.”

Summer league is the first step in a long runway for a rookie guard. There’s still training camp, preseason and an 82-game season that will come with inevitable trials and tribulations. Being such a high pick in a class full of players at his position, Wagler will be under a microscope.

But Wagler is in his current position because he has excelled in the stages preceding this moment. He intends to play freely and keep his confidence high, whether he’s missing shots or making mistakes. He has left good impressions on coaches, teammates and opponents along the way. That’s what has gotten him here.

“I just took that confidence into the college level and played my game like I was the best player on the court at all times,” Wagler said. “I just had that with me. And I’m going to bring that with me in the pros.”