We might be in the middle of the NBA offseason, but there is still basketball being played--with former Blue Devils grabbing headlines. A few former Duke basketball players recently had a chance to showcase their wares in the Orlando Summer League, hoping to either earn a roster spot or carve out a spot in an NBA rotation.
Our first Duke alumni is Kyle Singler, who spent last season overseas, mainly for Real Madrid in Spain. This season, Singler will be suiting up for the Detroit Pistons, the team that drafted him with the 33rd pick in the draft a year ago. The Pistons decided they had seen enough from Singler after just three games, choosing not to play him in the final two games of the exhibition schedule. Singler averaged 10.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in Orlando, shooting 50% from the field. Things weren't all good for Singler however. The small forward went 0-for-6 from three point range and fellow wing players Austin Daye and Kim English both earned All-Summer League recognition. He may have trouble finding a niche in the Piston rotation right away.
Next up is Miles Plumlee, playing for the Indiana Pacers. The 26th overall pick in this year's draft wasted little time proving he deserved to be a first round pick. Starting all five games on the schedule, Plumlee poured in 10.0 points, adding 6.6 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game. Plumlee was named to the All-Summer League First Team, beating out Orlando Magic rookie Kyle O'Quinn. After re-signing Roy Hibbert and trading for Ian Mahinmi, Plumlee will face an uphill battle for playing time in Indiana, but he surely helped his chances this summer.
Finally, we come to Jon Scheyer, who went undrafted following Duke's title in 2010. Last season Scheyer played for Maccabi Tel-Aviv, but played only sparingly. Scheyer played all five games for the Philadelphia 76ers, but unlike the other two Duke alumni, Scheyer is not under contract with the team. Scheyer scored 5.8 points and doled out 1.4 assists per game. While those numbers aren't going to jump out at anyone, Scheyer did two things that could catch the attention of NBA teams. The 6-foot-5 guard shot a very strong 40% from behind the three point line (4-for-10) and committed just four turnovers in 85 minutes of action. Scheyer hopes his play in this summer will get him an invite to a training camp.
With the Las Vegas Summer League getting underway, Duke fans will get a chance to see some more familiar faces before the NBA season gets underway.
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