Ryan Nembhard leads Mavericks scorers in loss to former Gonzaga teammate Anton Watson | Summer League

LAS VEGAS – Ryan Nembhard and Anton Watson exchanged handshakes and hugs before Saturday night’s NBA Summer League clash between the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers.

It was all friendly until bragging rights were on the line for the former Gonzaga teammates, who both started and contributed in Saturday’s nightcap at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Nembhard was the top scorer for Dallas, but Watson and Los Angeles pulled away thanks to a third-quarter surge and prevailed 91-70 to win their second game at Vegas Summer League.

Nembhard, who set single-season assist records during both of his seasons at Gonzaga, took on facilitating and scoring duties for Dallas, scoring 12 points on 3 of 11 shooting and 3 of 3 from the free throw line. The Canadian point guard also recorded five assists, five turnovers, two rebounds and one steal.

One night after scoring 15 points in the Lakers’ win over Oklahoma City, Watson didn’t have the same success on the offensive end against Dallas, missing both of his shots from the field and finishing scoreless in 13 minutes.

The former Gonzaga forward and Gonzaga Prep standout still left his imprint on the game, coming up with two steals while taking on a daunting defensive assignment for the second straight night.

Watson was the main defender on 6-foot-9 Dallas rookie Morez Johnson Jr., the ninth overall pick of the recent NBA draft. Johnson Jr., who won the 2026 national championship with Michigan, finished with 10 points on 4 of 7 from the field, but made all four of his shots when Watson was on Los Angeles’ bench.

The 6-foot-8 Watson deflected a post pass from Dallas guard Sergio de Larrea to Johnson in the second quarter for one of his two steals. Johnson returned the favor with a block on Watson later on in the quarter.

Twenty-four hours earlier, Watson had success guarding another member of Michigan’s national championship frontcourt, holding 7-foot-3 Oklahoma City center Aday Mara – the 12th overall draft pick – without any field goals in a 96-84 Los Angeles victory.

Nembhard lost to not one, but two former college teammates during Saturday’s game. Los Angeles’ Arthur Kaluma, who played two seasons with Nembhard at Creighton, erupted for a game-high 34 points, finishing 11 of 16 from the field and 6 of 10 from the 3-point line.

Abogidi contributes in Denver win

Efe Abogidi didn’t need much time to settle in making his NBA Summer League debut on Saturday for the Denver Nuggets.

The former Washington State forward didn’t see the floor in Denver’s opening game in Vegas, but was in coach J.J. Barea’s plans against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Abogidi was scoring at point-per-minute pace in the first half, totaling 10 points during a seven-minute stint off Denver’s bench. The 24-year-old wasn’t able to add to his point total in the second half, finishing with 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting and 2 of 4 from the 3-point line. Abogidi also had four rebounds and one steal in 13 minutes, helping the Nuggets cruise for a 101-82 victory at the Pavilion.

“I was going to give him a chance today, he didn’t play yesterday,” Barea said. “I just give him confidence, if you’re open, let it fly. He had some good blocks, some good rebounds and then he made some open shots, so great job by him, too.”

One of Abogidi’s former WSU teammates, TJ Bamba, is also on Denver’s Summer League roster and played 17 minutes off the bench Saturday, scoring seven points on 2 of 8 from the field and 1 of 4 from the 3-point line.

Other locals

• Former Gonzaga wings Tyon Grant-Foster (San Antonio Spurs) and Jalen Warley (Indiana Pacers) didn’t play for their respective Summer League teams on Saturday.

• Tyson Degenhart, a Spokane native and former Mt. Spokane High standout, didn’t score and missed his only two shot attempts in Toronto’s 102-89 Summer League loss to the Houston Rockets. Former WSU big man Oscar Cluff, who also played at South Dakota State and Purdue, scored six points and grabbed five rebounds for Houston.

• One-time Gonzaga signee Jack Kayil debuted at Summer League for the New York Knicks, scoring 12 points on 5 of 14 from the field and 2 of 7 from the 3-point line. Kayil signed with the Zags last November, but elected to keep his name in the NBA draft. The combo guard was selected by New York with the 39th overall pick.

• Hunter Sallis, who spent two seasons at Gonzaga before transferring to Wake Forest, didn’t score in seven minutes for the Brooklyn Nets, missing his only shot attempt against the Atlanta Hawks.