E.J. Liddell suffers knee injury as three Buckeyes participate in NBA summer league
The start of the Las Vegas Summer League has given a pair of former Ohio State players their first tastes of professional action.
Rookies Malaki Branham and E.J. Liddell, who were both all-Big Ten players for the Buckeyes last season before declaring early for the draft, have made their unofficial team debuts while participating in summer league action. San Antonio picked Branham in the first round while New Orleans took Liddell with the No. 41 overall pick and the 11th of the second round.
They’re not the only Buckeyes in the summer league. After signing a two-way contract with the Indiana Pacers last year, Duane Washington Jr. is playing for their team in Las Vegas for a second straight summer.
All teams get four scheduled regular-season games and a fifth that is determined by where they finish in the standings. Games will be played through Sunday.
Here’s how all three former Ohio State players have fared so far and when their remaining games will be played.
E.J. Liddell suffers knee injury in second game with New Orleans
After a slow start in his summer league opener, Liddell had to depart New Orleans' second game when he suffered a right knee injury during a game against Atlanta on Monday.
Following the game, Pelicans coach Jarron Collins said Liddell would undergo an MRI and that, for the time, they were calling it a right knee sprain.
Liddell needed to be helped from the court during the second quarter while dealing with discomfort in the knee. He was evaluated by the team's medical staff and allowed to return to action. New Orleans is expected to have an update Tuesday on Liddell's status.
He exited the game with 6 points on 3 of 3 shooting, four rebounds and two assists in 12:47.
A second-round pick, Liddell started his summer league opener and played 24:20 but scored 2 points in an 85-68 loss to Portland on July 9.
Five of Liddell’s six field-goal attempts were from two-point range and he missed his lone 3-point attempt. Liddell also finished with four rebounds, one block, a turnover and four fouls.
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Malaki Branham scores in double figures in San Antonio Spurs debut
As the draft approached, Branham was viewed as a potential candidate to remain in-state and go to Cleveland with the No. 14 pick. Instead, the Cavaliers picked Kansas’ Ochai Agbaji, and Branham went to San Antonio six picks later.
Fittingly, Branham’s first appearance in a Spurs uniform came against Cleveland. In 27:41 of playing time, Branham started and scored 15 points but the Cavaliers defeated San Antonio 99-90 on July 8. Branham went 6 for 15 from the floor and 2 for 6 from 3-point range while also grabbing three rebounds.
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Agbaji had 16 points on 5 of 11 shooting.
Two days later, Branham scored 6 points on 1 of 6 shooting in an 86-85 loss to Golden State. In 26:37, Branham was 1 for 3 from 3-point range and had five rebounds, three assists, one steal and a turnover.
👌 @MalakiBranham 👌 pic.twitter.com/frwqdac7TR
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) July 11, 2022
Branham topped all of that in his third game, going off for 20 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals in 28:08 in a 97-84 loss to Houston on July 11.
In three games, he has averaged 13.7 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 38.5% from the floor and 37.5% from 3. The Spurs will play and Atlanta on Thursday at 4 p.m.
Duane Washington returns to summer league with Indiana Pacers
After having his two-way contract converted to a multiyear deal during his rookie season, Washington finished the year averaging 9.9 points, 1.8 assists and 1.7 rebounds while shooting 37.7% from 3-point range in 20.2 minutes per game. He appeared in 48 games for the Pacers.
That came after averaging 10.4 points while shooting 48.6% from the floor and 47.8% from 3 in five summer league appearances last year. This year, Washington began the summer by scoring 10 points on 3 of 12 shooting while dishing out six assists and grabbing three rebounds in a 96-84 win against Charlotte on July 8.
A game against Sacramento two days later didn’t go as well. In a 103-96 loss, Washington scored 6 points and had one rebound in 19:55.
Indiana will play Detroit on July 12 and Washington on July 15. Both games are at 9 p.m.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State basketball: Malaki Branham has good Summer League debut
