LAS VEGAS — Three thoughts on the Jazz's summer league 92-89 2OT loss to the Portland Trail Blazers from KSL.com's Utah Jazz beat writer, Andy Larsen.

1. Trey Lyles is making strides

Trey Lyles had his best game of the summer league, a 30-point, nine-rebound performance that nearly carried the Jazz to a victory against the Blazers.

I think I was most excited by Lyles' outside stroke, and in particular his ability to catch the ball and shoot quickly, whether it be off a pick and pop, a give and go, or a spot-up opportunity. It's a skill that's absolutely elite for someone his height (6'10'').

Lyles' shooting from 3-point range is the easiest spot to see the improvement in his game. He's gone from making only four 3-pointers all season long in Kentucky to shooting only corner threes for the first few months of the Jazz's regular season. Now, he's showing deep 3-point NBA range, and even making 30-footers with the shot clock buzzer sounding:

After the game, Jazz summer league head coach Mike Wells was asked about how Lyles has improved his shot so much. What's his secret?

"His hard work. And Jeff Watkinson, one of our player development guys," Wells said. At this point, Wells' voice lowered, which only further emphasized his point:

"But don't underestimate the amount of hours that Trey Lyles has put in in the gym. He's done a fantastic job."

2. End of game fun

The Jazz had to make two big comebacks in this game. The first was in regulation, when they trailed by eight with 3:30 remaining. From there, the Jazz scored in six of the next seven possessions, thanks to some solid effort and critical offensive rebounds.

That sent the game to a two-minute overtime, where the Jazz again trailed. This time, they were down four points with five seconds left, with no timeouts. But Spencer Butterfield dribbled quickly to the 3-point line and got off a shot, forcing contact on the play. He then perfectly sank the next two free throws with 1.2 seconds left.

Still down two, the Jazz needed to miss the FT, rebound the ball, and score. This never works out... except this time it did:

In summer league, second overtime is sudden death: first team to score wins. The Jazz won the tip, but lost the ball off of Quincy Ford's leg. Pat Connaughton took a deep three on the other end and made it, ending the contest.

Overtime in summer league gets a lot of groans, especially from the next teams up waiting to play. But sudden death overtime is the greatest. Since it's summer league and winning and losing isn't the primary goal anyway, everyone likes the cheap drama and the schoolyard feel of "next point wins."

3. Spencer Butterfield turning heads

The Jazz's role players during this summer league have generally disappointed: Aaron Craft, Joel Bolomboy, Marcus Paige, Tyrone Wallace, Mike Tobey, Tibor Pleiss, and more haven't been as impactful as the Jazz hoped when adding them to the roster.

Butterfield, the former Utah State product, might be the Jazz's second or third best player from this summer league. His best attribute shown so far is knockdown outside shooting: the Jazz can run plays and get Butterfield open in the corner or at the wings, and he's been able to knock those shots down at nearly a 50 percent rate.

But I also think he's shown more defensive toughness and ability than the Jazz and scouts expected. He's doing a good job of fighting around screens, and is contesting shots pretty well too.

I'm not saying Butterfield is an NBA player: he's not. He's too small to play wing, and doesn't have enough on the ball to be a point guard at this level.

But after his play this summer, he's opened up a lot of doors for himself in his professional career overseas. Last year, he played in Lithuania, where he played against Jazz draft pick Olivier Hanlan. There, he shot 44 percent from three and picked up 15 points and picked up six rebounds per game. He's earned an upgrade if he wants it.

Summer league isn't only a scouting ground for NBA teams: hundreds of staffers from teams around the world come to Vegas to watch potential pickups for their own teams. Butterfield should have a lot of offers, and it will be fun to see where he ends up.

Related topics