The Houston Rockets had highs and lows at this year's NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. They would finish with a 1-4 record at the mini-camp, but more importantly for the team was the progress and growth that second-year guard Reed Sheppard showed ahead of his increased role for the Rockets' regular season squad.

The conventional wisdom is that everything you see on the court in Vegas is a mirage, but that's not entirely true.

Usually, the NBA champion has little to look forward to in the Summer League. With low draft picks, they spent the two-week extravaganza rewatching playoff highlights on their way to the Larry O'Brien trophy.

W hile recent draft picks are always the main attraction at NBA summer league, this year it was some of the elder statesmen who made the biggest impression. Of course, history teaches us to take even our most extreme optimism with a grain of salt as success from summer league can prove to be fickle once the NBA regular season rolls around.

Dylan Harper, VJ Edgecombe, and other recent 1st-round picks discuss their NBA Summer League experience and why it provides immediate value.

Now that summer league is concluding and the NBA officially begins its dark period, the stars from Las Vegas must be acknowledged because some unexpected players made big splashes.

NBA Las Vegas Summer League is over. The Charlotte Hornets defeated the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night in the final game from Sin City to claim their first Vegas Summer League title. Among the many standouts in the event,

Charlotte’s lottery pick Kon Knueppel led the Hornets to a 6-0 record and the NBA 2K26 Summer League championship in Vegas.