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NBA summer league 2021: What are insiders buzzing about in Vegas?

With the NBA draft and the aftershocks of a wild transaction period in the rearview mirror, the league is back in Las Vegas for summer league to witness the league's newest faces and retooled rosters.

Fans have poured into the Thomas & Mack Center and Cox Pavilion to watch top rookies like Cade Cunningham do work with their new teams, but have they met expectations thus far?

So what intelligence and buzz-worthy items have our NBA experts gleaned from summer league? Here's what scouts, coaches and top executives are saying about the fallout of the 2021 NBA draft, future moves teams could make and what young players have made strong impressions.


Everybody is in Las Vegas

The last time the NBA convened in Las Vegas for its annual summer league two years ago, only 19 of the 30 first-round picks -- and seven of the 14 lottery selections -- played for their teams. It was a moment that left many wondering if the league's days of showcasing early matchups featuring elite prospects against one another were over.

Fast forward to this summer, however, and that has proven not to be the case. Of the 30 players who were selected in last month's NBA draft, only Usman Garuba isn't playing in Vegas. And he has a pretty good reason: He was in Tokyo competing for Spain in the Olympics.

"I'm shocked," one East executive said.