Mavs Lose to Blazers, But Pangos Shines

In the Mavericks’ second game of this Summer League season Kevin Pangos elevated his play with an impressive outing.  The Mavericks ended up losing 93-80 to the Portland Trailblazers.

The Mavs struggled to score, especially from three point land going just 8/31.  They also finished with a low total shooting percentage of just 40.9%.  Kevin Pangos built on his good performance in his last game against the Pelicans.  In this game against the Blazers he had 12 points including going 2/3 from beyond the arc.  He also had six assists for the second game in the row.  Along with good scoring Pangos also collected five rebounds and added a steal.

Pangos was definitely a strong point on offense for the Mavs, but it is apparent that he has room to improve on the defensive end.  He plays scrappy defense, but he was exposed multiple times on drives down the lane by bigger guards.  I think that Pangos would greatly benefit from increasing his strength and working on defense.

It is also important to note that Pangos remains in control when he is playing the point.  Summer League basketball is sloppy and there are a lot of turnovers, but Pangos has done well at limiting turnovers when he is on the court.  In this game against the Blazers he only had one turnover.

It is extremely important for undrafted players like Pangos to make a good impression during these summer league games.  Even if these players do not remain with the teams that they originally start off with it is possible that a different team might pick them up.

The Mavericks will continue their Summer League season with a game against the Washington Wizards on Tuesday, July 14 at 12:30 pm PT.