The Summer League is a unique opportunity for players whose careers haven’t fully panned out to audition themselves with hopes of finding a permanent home in the NBA. After signing with the Philadelphia 76ers on a two-way deal, Dominick Barlow is well on his way to accomplishing that. Despite Philadelphia’s 96-94 loss to the Charlotte Hornets, Barlow showcased all of his best traits that encouraged it to take a chance on him in the first place.
Buy some Barlow stock
He followed up his steady debut against the San Antonio Spurs with 19 points on 9-15 shooting from the field and nine rebounds. Barlow also pitched in three steals and two assists, but shot just 1-5 from deep. He thrived in fast-break situations – recording countless emphatic dunks off leak-outs. Barlow also made himself known off the offensive glass as he notched five offensive rebounds and a few easy put-back twos. He was also an impactful defender – displaying solid IQ through help rotations and quality point-of-attack defense.
Before tip-off, I was skeptical of the 76ers’ decision to start Barlow over Johni Broome in two consecutive games since they used their second-round pick on Broome. While I still stand on the fact that a team should give its rookies as much burn as possible, Barlow’s two-way impact and rebounding could lead him to obtain a place in their rotation next season. With that in mind, it makes sense for Philadelphia to give him an increased role.
Broome looked better
Speaking of Broome, he had one of his better performances as of late – dropping 10 points on 4-7 shooting from the field and 2-2 accuracy from beyond the arc. He also contributed three rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Broome still has much room to grow on the defensive end, especially when defending off the dribble.
Regardless, he was much crisper offensively – serving mostly as a pick-and-pop threat with occasional post-up touches. This is undoubtedly the best setup for Broome between getting him acclimated with his likely role in Philadelphia while keeping him comfortable with what he is used to. Interestingly, there was one possession where Broome found Barlow off a back-door cut while operating from the baseline.
Bona was wreckless in a good way
Adem Bona also had a solid outing with eight points on 4-9 shooting from the field, six boards, and five stocks (steals and blocks). He was a bit rough around the edges, but had a few strong drives against Ryan Kalkbrenner, although with some mixed results. His combination of speed and athleticism will mold him into a quality off-the-dribble threat one day. He did struggle when guarding Kalkbrenner – a taller center – in pick-and-rolls and coughed up five turnovers.
Edwards continues to struggle
If you squint, Justin Edwards put up a barely subpar performance – notching 14 points on 5-16 shooting from the field and 2-7 shooting from downtown. The only silver lining here is that he scored most of his points in the second half and remained aggressive as a slasher. Most of his spot-up opportunities fell flat and he didn’t look more comfortable as an on-ball scorer – despite his increased reps in the Summer League.