The Orlando Pro Summer League gets set to kick off in a little over a week. For the Oklahoma City Thunder, they never head to Las Vegas. They prefer the intimate details of the Orlando league. There are no fans. No real distractions. There is media and team personnel there. With the outside world blocked off, the Thunder can better evaluate their prospects. Oklahoma City did win the 2013 OPSL Championship with Jeremy Lamb winning MVP honors.
You’ll get to see a nice squad of Thunder players at this year’s event. Josh Huestis, Domas Sabonis, and Semaj Christon, are all expected to play. Oh yeah, and Terrance Ferguson, the Thunder’s most recent draft pick is expected to play.
From the Oklahoma City Blue, Daniel Hamilton, Alex Caruso, and Dakari Johnson should be suited up as well.
We’re still learning what undrafted free agents will join the team, too. Right now only one confirmed is Malcolm Hill of Illinois. He’s a small forward and should see minutes behind Huestis.
This season, the Thunder will be joined by the Orlando Magic, Charlotte Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and the New York Knicks.
In the past, Orlando has fielded a blue and white squad. That is not the case this season.
All games will be available on NBA.com or you can watch them on your TV on NBATV. Check your local listings and such.
Here is the Oklahoma City schedule for the six-day event:
- July 1: at Detroit Pistons- 4 p.m.
- July 2: OFF
- July 3: vs. New York Knicks – 12 p.m.
- July 4: vs. Charlotte Hornets – 12 p.m.
- July 5: vs. Dallas Mavericks – 12 p.m.
- July 6: Championship Day:
1st game — 7:00 a.m. — 8th place at 7th place
2nd game — 9:00 a.m. — 6th place at 5th place
3rd game — 11:00 p.m. — 4th place at 3rd place
4th game — 1:00 p.m. — 2nd place at 1st place
Oklahoma City’s history in the OPSL
(since becoming the Thunder)
2008: Sixth Place (of six) — 2-3
2009: Third Place (of six) — 3-2
2010: Champions (of six) — 4-1
2011: No Summer League due to lockout
2012: Fourth Place (of eight) — 3-2
2013: Champions (of 10) — 5-0
2014: Seventh Place (of 10) — 2-3
2015: Fourth Place (of 10) — 3-2
2016: Third Place (of 10) — 4-1
Past OPSL Champions
Year | League | Champion | Score | Runner-up | League MVP | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Orlando | Oklahoma City Thunder | 85–77 | Houston Rockets | Jeremy Lamb | |
2014 | Orlando | Philadelphia 76ers | 91–75 | Memphis Grizzlies | Elfrid Payton | |
2015 | Orlando | Memphis Grizzlies | 75–73 (OT) | Orlando Magic (White) | Aaron Gordon | |
2016 | Orlando | Orlando Magic (White) | 87–84 (OT) | Detroit Pistons | Arinze Onuaku |
Game Rules
- Four 10-minute quarters
- Eight-minute halftime
- Ten-minute warm-up period prior to the start of each game
- Teams are in the penalty on the 10th team foul or second in the last two minutes
- Players foul out on their 10th personal foul
- Each team will receive two full timeouts per half
- Mandatory timeouts will be taken at the first stoppage of play after 5:59 and 2:59 of each quarter
- A timeout taken by a team will negate the next mandatory timeout in that quarter
- Timeouts do not carry over
- All timeouts will be 1:45 in duration
- Each team will also receive one advance (stop play, ability to substitute, and inbound the ball from the 28’ mark in the frontcourt) in the last two minutes of the 4th quarter and in any overtime period
Overtime
- Two-minute overtime period
- Each team is allowed one timeout
- Each team is allowed one advance
- Penalty begins on the 2nd team foul
- The second overtime period is sudden death (first team to score a point wins)
All other NBA rules apply.
Competition Format
- Each team will play five games over the six-day event
- Standings will be kept over the first five days of the league according to a point system (described below)
- Every team will play their fifth and final game against the opponent seeded most closely to them in the standings
- For example, the two teams with the highest point totals will play in the Championship game; the teams with the third and fourth-highest point totals play in a third place game, etc.
Point System
- Standings over the first six days of the league will be kept using an EIGHT-POINT SYSTEM. In this system, eight points are awarded each game and distributed as follows:
- Four points for winning the game -One point for every quarter a team wins (in the event of a tied quarter, both teams will receive 0.5 points)
- As a result, the winning team in each game can collect between five to eight points, while the losing team can collect from zero to three points.
Championship Seeding Criteria
- Championship seeding will be determined by a team’s total points in the league standings
- In the event of a tie, the following tie-breaker steps will be in place:
- Tiebreaker 1: Total point differential
- Tiebreaker 2: Total points allowed
- Tiebreaker 3: Coin flip
Note – Overall or head-to-head win/loss record will NOT impact championship day seeding. Seeding will be determined solely by the criteria above.
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