Dante Returns to Summer League Action, Trailblazers Notch First Victory

Posted by Chris on July 19, 2009
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Last night, Dante Cunningham returned from his groin injury that forced him to sit out Friday night’s game.  With his return, the Portland Trailblazers beat the San Antonio Spurs for their first win of the NBA Summer League.  Cunningham put up another solid effort, playing a game-high 30+ minutes and scoring 14 points on 7-12 from the field.  He also grabbed 2 rebounds, had 1 steal and 1 blocked shot, and committed zero turnovers.  Dante’s former Big East counterpart, DeJuan Blair, scored 16 points and had 11 rebounds for the Spurs.  The Trailblazers wrap up their Summer League schedule tonight vs. the D-League Select team.

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4 Comments to Dante Returns to Summer League Action, Trailblazers Notch First Victory

Larry Harris
July 19, 2009

Numerical oddity: Cunningham (33) and his Portland fellow draftee Pendergraph (31) are wearing the same numbers as the order in which they were drafted. . . Hopefully, both are locks to make the Trail Blazers’ roster, but it is SUMMER LEAGUE. . . Tonight’s game against a group that is supposedly more seasoned may be a harbinger of things to come.

Brian
July 19, 2009

Very good point Larry Harris. The D-League Select team is made up of ten players from the NBA Development League. All have played very well at this D-League level, and thus, they were selected to the team. All of their games in the Summer League have been very close. They beat the T-Wolves and Kings, while losing to the Suns and Nuggets in tight contests.

Chocolate Thunder
July 19, 2009

Dante has looked positively unstoppable in his summer league games. I saw the houston game, and although he nearly single handedly blew it at the end, his shot, low post moves and competency in the flow of their offense was crazy good. He looks absolutely head and shoulders above even his best games at Nova (likely because this is Summer League, but still makes you proud).

Still needs a bit of work on the handle, but it’s been really promising.

Brian
July 19, 2009

Agreed. I think, barring any major injury, Dante will make the Trailblazers roster this year, which will only help him in his development. The one thing that is tough and will continue to be tough for Dante is his lack of a defined position for the NBA. He is a classic “tweener”; not quick enough and limited range for the 3 spot, but on the small side for the 4 spot.

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