Wednesday night marked the debut of the Las Vegas Summer League Championship, the new tournament-style format used to determine a Summer League champion. Three games are in the books thus far, with the Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves winning and advancing. Let's take a closer look at the outcomes.
Las Vegas Summer League 2013: Nuggets, Grizzlies, Timberwolves advance in tournament
Denver, Memphis and Minnesota won the first wave of Las Vegas Summer League Championship games Wednesday night.
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE
Hamilton leads Nuggets past Pelicans
The Nuggets were the lowest seed in the tournament at No. 22, but they were able to defeat the No. 11 Pelicans , 87-82, behind 23 points from Jordan Hamilton. Hamilton shot 8-of-14 overall and 4-of-7 from three. Quincy Miller put forth an excellent effort as well, scoring 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting overall and a scorching 5-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Denver burst out of the gates quickly, grabbing a 31-17 lead after the first quarter. The Pelicans got back into the game early in the second quarter, but the Nuggets extended their lead back out to 11 at the break. New Orleans got to within one in the fourth quarter, but they were never able to get over the hump.
Darius Miller had 23 points to lead the Pelicans. Brian Roberts added 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Austin Rivers chipped in 16 points.
Wroten, Cooley star for Grizzlies in victory over Wizards
Like the Nuggets, the No. 21 Grizzlies pulled the "upset" by defeating the 12th-seeded Washington Wizards, 90-83. Tony Wroten led the way for the Grizzlies with 23 points and six assists. Jack Cooley added a double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Donte Greene had 16 points.
The game was tight throughout the first half, with the Grizzlies taking a one-point lead into the break. But Memphis broke the game open in the third quarter, outscoring Washington, 24-8, in the frame. The Wizards finished strong, but it was not enough to make up for the poor third quarter.
No. 3 pick Otto Porter didn't play in the game after struggling in the first three games of the summer. Chris Singleton had 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, and Jan Vesely continued his strong summer with 15 points and nine rebounds. Glen Rice Jr. added 14 points.
Timberwolves blow out Kings
The No. 13 Timberwolves dominated the No. 20 Sacramento Kings from the get-go, cruising to a 92-54 victory. Shabazz Muhammad led a balanced Wolves attack with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting and 3-of-4 from three. Demetri McCamey had 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting as Minnesota shot 53.8 percent from the field.
The Timberwolves jumped out to a 21-10 lead after the end of the first quarter and never looked back. The lead ballooned to 26 at halftime and the game never got close again in the second half.
The Kings struggled offensively, shooting just 29.9 percent as a team. No. 7 pick Ben McLemore had an especially rough go of it, scoring one point and not making a single field goal in eight attempts. Will Clyburn had 15 points to lead Sacramento.
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