EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Months later, Rob Pelinka was still searching for the right words to describe what he saw and experienced at the Las Vegas Summer League in July. The Lakers general manager watched Lonzo Ball infect the Lakers' summer league roster of young NBA hopefuls and nightly packed crowds at the Thomas and Mack Center with an energy and excitement that has the longtime agent still buzzingLas Vegas was an amazing experience," Pelinka said on the eve of Lakers training camp. "The energy in that building -- I've been 20 years in the NBA, [and] I've never experienced that level of energy around summer league games. It's capturing that lightning in a bottle that we felt there and carrying it forward. We felt it every day [working out this summer]. The heartbeat and the soul of that Lakers
Julio Jones Youth Jersey team is what happens on the court." That "heartbeat and soul" was fueled by Ball, who started something in mid-July that has only snowballed with momentum ever since. On Sunday, Ball and the Lakers return to Las Vegas to play a preseason game against the Sacramento Kings. Ball (mildly sprained ankle) is considered questionable to play and might miss another chance to face potential rookie rival point guard De'Aaron Fox. Ball did not get to play Fox in summer league, when the Lakers held him out of a highly anticipated meeting because of a groin injury. No matter what happens on Sunday, Las Vegas will likely be a special place for Ball. After all, that is where it all started for the No. 2 overall pick. Ball might have opened his summer league slow, struggling with his shot, but he finished strong, registering two triple-doubles with four games of 10 assists or more and averaging 16.3 points, a summer-league-leading 9.3 assists, 7.7 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. Despite missing the championship game with a calf strain, the 19-year-old rookie was named MVP. He was the first in Las Vegas Summer League history to have more than one game with 10 assists. And no other rookie has ever had a triple-double in Vegas, according to ESPN Stats & InformationElite facilitator/passer, makes everyone better," one longtime Eastern Conference talent evaluator said at summer league after only needing to see him twice to be sold on the Lakers rookie. "If you just do what you're supposed to do, he will get you the ball right on time. He's pretty incredible. No disappointment on my part. ... The
http://www.officialsfalconsauthenticshop.com/Justin_Hardy_Jersey_Cheapguy is special. He reminds me of J-Kidd. "What all great passers do is the guy takes a picture in his head," the talent evaluator added. "The guy rebounds the ball, and he looks up and takes a picture. Watch every other point guard. [Ball] looks up the floor and takes a quick snapshot. The other [point guards] don't do that. That's what he does. Like Jason [did]." Some coaches and GMs saw a lot of Kidd in Ball at summer league. It wasn't just the pass-first mentality that reminded some of them of Kidd. They noted how Ball had a knack for immediately pushing the ball up the court and firing, at times, pinpoint three-quarter-court passes over the outstretched arms of defenders and into the hands of teammates for dunks. One particular pass dazzled the crowd and even Lakers president Magic Johnson, who stood up and applauded after watching Ball chase down a loose ball near half court and beat an oncoming Dallas Maverick to the ball before punching it ahead to teammate Alex Caruso for a dunk. Lakers summer league coach Jud Buechler, a three-time NBA champion who played for 12 years, proclaimed Ball "already one of the best passers I've seen at this level." And
Kevin Norwood Jersey that was after the point guard played only his third game in VegasOn the field in college he was known as "Griffin III" and after being drafted by the Washington Redskins in 2012, he became the first NFL player to have a Roman numeral on his back, according to UniWatch research. At the time, Griffin seemed he might be an outlier. He turned out to be a trend-setter. NFL players have continued to add generational titles to the nameplates on the backs of their jerseys -- an explosion of Sr., Jr., III, IV and V across the league. It seems as if almost every team has at least one player with a suffix behind his given name on his jersey. "I do think more guys are doing it," said Detroit Lions wide receiver Golden Tate, who has the Roman numeral "III" on his jersey. "I think it looks better." Like many other players, Tate began his career, then with the Seahawks, as just "Tate." Then, when he was allowed to make the change after Griffin's jersey move in 2012, Tate eventually added the Roman numerals. The meaning, though, is deeper than cosmetics. It's a personal decision that varies by player. "I don't know," Tate said. "Maybe so the world can know that they are not the first Golden Tate, there's the second, third, fourth, fifth. It's just another way. Ask someone
http://www.footballpanthershop.com/Kony_Ealy_Jersey_Cheapelse that." We did. And every nameplate has a story -- a reason the extra letters or numerals are put there
