On Sunday night, the Oklahoma City Thunder took on the Detroit Pistons in their opening NBA Summer League matchup. While OKC was debuting their four new rookies, it was one of their second-round picks who had the most impressive performance.
The recent No. 32 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl looked spectacular. He finished the night with 14 points, six rebounds, two steals and a block in 27 minutes of play. He also did it efficiently on 6-for-12 from the floor.
“I just wanted to be the best version of myself as I can,” said Robinson-Earl on Sunday “I wanted to go out there and compete at a high level and just make sure I give it my all every single game.”
The former Villanova forward was tied for the second-most points of any player in that game, which is especially impressive considering there were multiple starting quality NBA players who played in that game.
Just 20 years old, it was clear coming into the NBA that Robinson-Earl was NBA ready. While his floor isn't as high as some of his peers in the 2021 draft class, he is a proven professional with a polished game. It's only been one game thus far, but it certainly appears that he might be the most NBA-ready player on the entire Thunder summer league roster.
Robinson-Earl gives a ton of credit to his coaching staff at Villanova for the development of his game.
“I think it just gives a lot of credit to Jay Wright and how he how he develops his players and kind of ingrained with that mindset of playing hard for 40 minutes getting doing all the little details getting yourselves off your team that lead to team success,” said Robinson-Earl in an introductory press conference. “I think Coach Wright for the two years I was there did a great job of developing me as a person off the court which is most important, but then also being the best player I possibly can be for the team.”
Robinson-Earl still has a lot he can improve on and will certainly get better, but in terms of being able to impact an NBA game today, he might be the top Thunder rookie.
With the ability to do a little bit of everything, he's able to impact winning in multiple ways. Whether it's being versatile and playing multiple positions or doing the little things when the team needs it, Robinson-Earl is willing do what it takes to win.
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