'Family Can’t Save Them': Heat Legend Explains Why Summer League Talent Should Go After Bronny James and Cooper Flagg

If you find yourself under the spotlight in the upcoming Summer League, make sure to rise to the occasion. Nobody expects a genius to emerge from the league before the season starts, but it helps if one manages to dominate some of the more popular names on the court. At least, according to Miami Heat legend Udonis Haslem.

The Summer League’s entire purpose is to allow teams to try out different rosters. So, for young talent, rookies, sophomores, and G League Affiliate players, this is an exceptional opportunity to get noticed and maybe earn a spot on the A-team.

According to Haslem, the best way to do this is by not just performing, but making memorable moments when the aspiring players come face to face with relatively known talents.

“I’m going to talk about the other guys. Because we talked about the Reed Sheppards. We talked about the Cooper Flags. We talked about the Jeremiah Fears. We talked about the Bronny Juniors. We talked about those guys. I want to talk about other guys that was in my position,” Haslem asserted.

“This is your chance,” he proclaimed, adding that whenever they get the chance to go against the pundits’ favorites like Flagg, Fears, and Bronny, they needed to make it count.

“And at the end of the day, their stat sheet is not necessarily going to reflect if they make the team or not. They’ve been drafted. They are on that team. You have to make that team. You have to turn heads. So, you have to compete at a high level against them,” Haslem declared.

“Their family can’t save them. The referees can’t save them. Nobody can save him when you’ve got these in between these lines in the summer league. This is your opportunity. Don’t waste it,” the 3-time NBA champion advised.

Haslem reminisced about the league when he was an up-and-comer and said that back in the day, anybody watching the rookies test their mettle would have been related to them.

“You might have had your mama, daddy, and your agent in the crowd. That’s about it. It was none of that. They were showing up to see your a** play some. They had to really love you,” he added, laughing.

Haslem also explained that the competition has simply gone up in the off-season league as well. While it won’t be a real test for the draft picks, they will still need to show that they belong at the big boys’ table.

“You want to see their basketball IQ. You want to see defensively if they’re going to be in the right spots. You want to see if they can remember the plays. You want to see if you put them in a position, what their strengths are. You want to see what their weaknesses are. Can they make other guys better?” the former NBA champion asserted.

Well, hopefully, the Summer League will continue to be a place where lesser-known talent can come and showcase their skills and give teams reasons to sign them.