Starting 5 Daily Newsletter

Starting 5: Late rallies fuel Saturday's action

Labaron Philon's "cooking" helps the 76ers stave off the Pacers; Magic win the battle of Florida; Pelicans stifle Hornets.

NBA.com Staff

July 12, 2026 2:54 PM

The Vegas heat went up another notch Saturday, as game after game at NBA Summer League went down to the wire.

Action from Day 3 of the 2026 Summer League.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

July 12, 2026

Day 3 Rallies: Four games were decided in the waning moments Saturday, including Labaron Philon ‘cooking’ for the 76ers

Run It Back In July: The summer Spurs stifle the Knicks; the Nuggets defeat the Wolves

Lake Show: Arthur Kaluma (34 pts) shows out for the Lakers with the high-scoring performance of the day

Seeing Red: A look at Caleb Wilson after he announced his presence Friday

Another Glimpse: AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson expected to be in action during Sunday’s slate

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Top picks return to the floor Sunday…

Sunday brings eight enticing NBA Summer League matchups, including AJ Dybantsa and the Wizards facing Darius Acuff Jr. and the Kings in primetime (8 ET, Prime Video).

1. RALLY TIME: FOUR SATURDAY SHOWDOWNS WITH BIG 2ND-HALF SHIFTS

Saturday’s slate had its share of 2nd-half rallies, with one pushing all the way into overtime.

Sixers 100, Pacers 93 (OT): Up 59-45 at halftime, Philly’s No. 22 pick Labaron Philon predicted more “cookin’” in the 2nd half. But it was Indy’s second-round pick, Braden Smith (16 pts), and two-way player Yuki Kawamura (12 pts) who ignited the Pacers’ 48-34 2nd-half push to force overtime.

With new Sixer Jaylen Brown looking on, Philon (24 pts, 6 ast) and returner Johni Broome (23 pts, 11 reb) put Philly ahead for good in the 2-minute OT, surviving for a 2-0 summer start. | Recap

Scoring Impact: Philon (21.0 ppg) has tallied 42 points through two games in Vegas with the Sixers
Pacers returner Jalen Slawson (20.5 ppg) recorded a game-high 26 points to lead five double figure scorers for Indy (1-1)

Kingston Flemings gets downhill in the lane for the lefty layup around the contesting rim protector.

Hawks 83, Nets 76: Down by 10 with under 9 minutes to play, Atlanta closed on a 26-9 run to flip the game for its second Vegas win. Kobe Johnson led the Hawks with 17 points and 7 rebounds. | Recap

Future Check: Atlanta’s No. 23 pick Zuby Ejiofor struck for 13 points and 6 rebounds, while No. 8 pick Kingston Flemings (9 pts, 7 reb, 5 ast) did a little bit of everything
Nets Leaders: Chaney Johnson (20 pts, 10 reb, 5 stl) and Danny Wolf (20 pts, 5 reb) combined for 40 for Brooklyn in the loss, who were without Mikel Brown Jr. and Egor Dëmin on a back-to-back
Skywalking Slam: Watch Johnson take flight on the break and throw down, as part of his 12-point start in the 1st quarter

Magic 93, Heat 88: After Miami’s Jahmir Young (19 pts, 27 overall) and Trevor Keels (15 pts, game-high 32 overall) combined for 34 points in the 1st half, Orlando locked in defensively to limit the Heat to 36 total 2nd-half points.

2025’s No. 32 pick, Noah Penda (12 pts, 7 reb), logged two huge blocks in the game’s final minute to preserve Orlando’s 3-point lead, including this game-sealer. Both teams move to 1-1. | Recap

Noah Penda with the game-saving block.

Familiar Magic: Second-year guard Jase Richardson (5 reb, 6 ast), son of former NBA high-flyer Jason Richardson, joined Lester Quiñones and Colin Castleton as a trio of 15-point scorers to lead Orlando
Dad’s message? “Just be more physical,” Jase said. “As a smaller guard, guys are gonna try to pick on you, so [I’m] being as physical as I can, defensively.”

Pelicans 95, Hornets 91: Trailing by as many as 18 points, New Orleans closed on a 25-8 run, holding Charlotte scoreless for the final 2 minutes to claim its first lead of the game with just 51 seconds remaining. | Recap

Experience Leads: Second-year Pelican Hunter Dickinson (21 pts) led New Orleans, while Kobe Bufkin (19 pts, 6 reb, 5 ast, 4 stl) stuffed the stat sheet. Liam McNeeley (17 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast) paced Charlotte
Picks Pop: Charlotte’s No. 18 pick Christian Anderson set his high for the summer so far with 12 points, while NOLA second-rounder Jaron Pierre Jr. also went for 12 off the bench

2. SUMMER RIVALS: SPURS DROP KNICKS, NUGGETS BEAT WOLVES

Stephen Greathouse/NBAE via Getty Images

Just 28 days after facing the Knicks in the deciding game of the 2026 NBA Finals, Carter Bryant was lining up against the orange and blue again, in Las Vegas.

Spurs 70, Knicks 49: Bryant piled up a game-high 19 points and added two blocks, as both teams struggled from the field and San Antonio held New York to 17 1st-half points. Both the Spurs (1-1) and Knicks (0-2) are back in action Sunday. | Recap

Second-Round Studs: Spurs’ No. 42 pick Ja’Kobi Gillespie went for 14 points, 5 boards and 5 assists, while the Knicks’ No. 47 selection Tyler Nickel led New York with 16 points and 4 3s

David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

Nuggets 101, Wolves 82: Denver held Minnesota to 10 4th-quarter points, allowing no field goals and just four points in the final 7:25 to pull away. KJ Simpson (19 pts, 4 ast) and Erik Stevenson (18 pts, 4 3s) led the way for Denver, and Minnesota’s Zyon Pullin (24 pts) led all scorers. | Recap

“It got serious.”: Enjoy five-time All-Star John Wall’s call of this Donovan Williams dunk over a whole pack of Nuggets players
Draft Pick Progress: Denver second-rounder Bryce Hopkins (No. 49 pick) collected 16 points and 7 rebounds

3. ROUNDUP: LATE-NIGHT LAKE SHOW & SECOND-ROUNDERS SHOW OUT

Candice Ward/NBAE via Getty Images

Lakers 91, Mavericks 70: G-Leaguer Arthur Kaluma’s 34 points on 68.8 FG% (11-16 FG, 6-10 3FG) provided one of the strongest scoring performances of the summer, and Los Angeles backed him up by holding Dallas to 26 2nd-half points. | Recap

Lake Show Update: Cameron Carr (thumb) missed this second-half of a back-to-back, while Adou Thiero followed up his 20-point Friday with 15 more
Lakers Rolling: L.A. moves to 2-0 in Las Vegas, with a combined win margin of +33. The summer squad has won four in a row (4-1 overall) when including their play in the California Classic
Ryan Nembhard (12 pts, 5 ast) led the way for Dallas (0-2), who also got 10 points, 5 boards and 4 blocks from No. 9 pick Morez Johnson Jr.

Raptors 102, Rockets 89: One day after his triple attempt to tie the game at the OT buzzer rimmed out, Seth Lundy ripped six 3s for a game-high 23 points to lead Toronto to victory (1–1) over Houston (1-1). | Recap

High Efficiency: 7’5 Jamarion Sharp supplied 17 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting night for Toronto, while first-round pick Allen Graves logged 9 points (4-7 FG)
Staying Hot: Houston’s No. 31 pick Bruce Thornton tallied 17 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals in the loss, following up his 27-point outing Friday

4. AFTER WAIT, WILSON WOWS IN DEBUT

David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images

Six whole days after Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer – the second and third picks in June’s Draft, respectively – made their summer debuts, No. 4 pick Caleb Wilson got his chance.

Similar to top overall pick AJ Dybantsa, who also had to wait for Vegas Summer League to get on the floor, Wilson reached for records in his first taste of summer hoops.

One-Up No. 1: One night after Dybantsa’s 27 tied the mark for most points by a top-pick in his NBA Summer League debut, Wilson shot past with 35
It’s the most points in any NBA Summer League debut, and he got there with the help of seven made 3s (7-11 3FG)
That’s as many 3s as Wilson hit in his entire UNC career – the 2025-26 season – never hitting more than one in a game in Tar Heel blue
“College is a much different game than the NBA,” Wilson said Friday. “My coaches didn’t tell me not to shoot 3s, but I was really good at what I did in college, which was: be an athlete and create opportunities for others.”

“So I just did what needed to be done for us to be a successful team at that [college] level.”

Wilson’s wait for this scoring outburst was even longer when you consider the way that freshman year at North Carolina ended for him, with multiple hand injuries costing him the team’s final 9 games, including the NCAA Tournament.

“In all honesty… I cried before I played today,” Wilson said Friday. “I mean, it’s been five months to the day since the last time I played. I’ve just been really emotional, because I haven’t been able to play.”
“I felt terrible because my [UNC] team lost in the Tournament and our coach [Hubert Davis] got fired,” he continued. “It just was a lot for me at that point…”
“So, coming out today… it just felt like I’ve been waiting so long for this opportunity, and I’m just glad I got to come out here and play.”

Wilson’s journey to the NBA wasn’t all defined by adversity, wrote NBA.com’s Jeff Zillgitt, as the freshman drew high praise from scouts, analysts, and even UNC legend and NBA Hall-of-Famer James Worthy:

“‘James’ jersey is hanging in the rafters at the Dean Dome in Chapel Hill,” Wilson said. “Having him acknowledge me was just crazy for me.

‘And the message that I get from him is just to take every day and really appreciate it, and he just always talks to me about the process and enjoying it.’ …

‘He’s going to be a face of that city,’ said ESPN draft analyst Fran Fraschilla of Wilson in Chicago.

‘He believes he’s the best player in the draft, and Chicago needs that kind of edge, that chip on the shoulder … I can’t wait to see Caleb Wilson in Chicago because of that chip he wears. It’s a boulder coming into that city.’” | Read More | Road To The Draft: Caleb Wilson

Chance To Prove It: After his showdown with No. 3 pick Boozer, Wilson is next scheduled to match up with No. 2 pick Peterson and Utah (Monday, 9 ET) and then No. 1 pick Dybantsa and Washington (Tuesday, 8 ET)

5. SUNDAY PREVIEW: DYBANTSA VS. ACUFF JR, WHILE PETERSON & JAZZ LOOK TO RESPOND

Ethan Miller/NBA E via Getty Images

Sunday’s 8-game slate in Las Vegas brings a pair of clashes between top-10 2026 Draft picks, with the top-2 of AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson expected to get back to action.

Wizards vs. Kings (8 ET, Prime): No. 1 pick Dybantsa’s second game pits him against No. 7 pick Darius Acuff Jr., who’s showcased his scoring strengths across three games (22.0 ppg) in the Cali Classic and Vegas.

Acuff Jr.’s quick trigger all over the floor has him averaging 22.0 ppg, including 9 3PA (3-9 3FG) in his Vegas debut Thursday, a 6-point win.

Dybantsa’s downhill attack and midrange combo in Thursday’s win allowed him to match Blake Griffin’s NBA Summer League record for most points (27) by a No. 1 pick in his NBA Summer League debut.

Clippers vs. Jazz (10 ET, Prime): More elite rookie scoring is expected to be on display when No. 2 pick Peterson gets his first look at No. 5 pick Keaton Wagler and LA.

After going 3-0 as hosts of the Salt Lake City Summer League, the Jazz look to avenge a loss to Dybantsa’s Wizards in their Vegas opener.

Electric Start: Peterson (25.7 ppg) has surpassed the 24-point mark in each of his three games so far (2-1), between Salt Lake City and Vegas, showcasing his shotmaking and range (19-36 FG, 7-16 3FG in SLC)
Breaking Out: After a slow start to his summer against Acuff Jr., Wagler looks to display his dynamic guard play, which led him to set the record for most points by a freshman in Illinois history

Thunder vs. Warriors (6 ET, Prime): It’s another Western Conference showdown of former Michigan teammates turned lottery picks, as No. 11 pick Yaxel Lendeborg and the 1-0 Dubs see No. 12 pick Aday Mara and OKC.

Hornets vs. Celtics (5 ET, ESPN2): An East matchup of two teams fueled by key returning NBA talent, with Charlotte led by Liam McNeeley (22.5 ppg), Ryan Kalkbrenner and Sion James, and Boston featuring Amari Williams (23.0 ppg) and Hugo González.