Video: Doug McDermott Drops 31 In Summer League

Creighton’s four-year forward Doug McDermott was tentative in his first summer league game on Saturday night against the Clippers, but settled down on Sunday. Watch him drop 31 points on 5-of-9 shooting from deep against the Nuggets.

Doug was just 2-for-8 for 10 points — along with a respectable five boards and four assists — in 31 minutes of action in his debut. He admitted how “uptight” he was to Bulls.com’s Sam Smith in his first game, but the game “slowed down” for him some on Sunday.

“I was so excited for my first game, a little uptight. Today [Sunday], it slowed down. It felt like basketball. Back to normal.”

Here’s more from Sam on Doug’s first two contests in Vegas:

McDermott’s shot is smooth and true and looks like it’s going in every time he shoots it. It’s going to give Snell, for one, a lot of exercise as Snell is fond of leaping off the bench with arms raised whenever a teammate attempts and makes a three. It hasn’t been a frequent occurrence since Ben Gordon left. McDermott is seven of 14 on threes in the two games. And as important, McDermott is showing more game. He attacked the basket well Sunday after a more tentative outing in the first game and shot a dozen free throws. He is 16 of 17 from the line in the two games. And that’s with debut jitters.

“I feel shooting is my biggest strength right now,” acknowledged McDermott. “I’m trying to add things to my game every day. I feel I’m a lot more than a shooter. I feel I’m a complete player. Having a coach like Tom Thibodeau is only going to help me. The (NBA) game is more physical. I’m going to have to be more creative in how I get position. Coming off screens initially is going to help me the most.”

It’s always important to remember this is summer league, a far cry from the trials and tribulations many July standouts will fail to overcome when the real season begins (before the real season in the playoffs). Adam Morrison was a summer league stud, among others who washed out once the games that count began.

Still, Doug’s smooth stroke has to give Bulls fans something to be happy about. He’s knocked down 7-of-14 from deep in two games with one including the first-game jitters. For a Bulls team that finished in the bottom five in three-pointers made during the 2013-14 season, and 24th in three-point shooting percentage, that’s a good sign.

(Bulls.com; video via Dawk Ins)

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