Three former enthusiasts compete in the NBA summer league

BOULDER Three former University of Colorado men’s basketball players are on the roster for the 2023 NBA 2K24 Summer League tournament, which runs from July 7-17. July in Las Vegas.

McKinley Wright IV (2017–21) with the Dallas Mavericks and Jabari Walker (2020–22) with the Portland Trail Blazers are playing with their current NBA teams. Tyler Bey (2017-20) joins the Milwaukee Bucks after a successful season in Israel.

Walker played in 56 games as a starter for Portland in 2022-23, averaging 3.9 points and 2.3 rebounds while shooting 42 percent in just over 11 minutes per game. He helped the Trail Blazers win the 2022 Las Vegas NBA Summer League title, averaging 12.4 points and 9.0 rebounds while shooting 63 percent from the field.

Walker was 57^th The Trail Blazers’ overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft after earning All-Pac-12 Conference First Team honors as a sophomore with the Buffaloes in 2021-22, averaging 14.6 points and a league-best 9.4 rebounds per game.

Wright averaged 4.2 points and 2.1 assists in 27 games for Dallas in 2022-23; his second NBA season. This will be his third NBA Summer League game in Minnesota in 2021 and Phoenix in 2022.

A three-time All-Pac-12 performer and Colorado’s all-time assists leader, Wright joined the Mavericks after spending his rookie season on a two-way deal with Minnesota. Wright spent most of the season with the Iowa Wolves, averaging 19.1 points per game and finishing fifth in the NBA G League in assists with 7.7 assists. He played in five games for the Timberwolves in the 2021-22 season.

Bey played for Ironi Ness Ziona of the Israeli Premier League in the 2022–2023 season, scoring 20.3 points per game. He also paced Ness Ziona with 7.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals while shooting 60 percent from the field.

Bey returns to the United States for his third NBA Summer League appearance in Chicago in 2021 and Philadelphia in 2022. He helped Rio Grande Valley to the 2022 NBA G League title, averaging 11.8 points and 7.4 rebounds in 29 games for the Vipers. The 2019-20 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, Bey was originally selected by the 76ers in the second round of the 2020 NBA Draft before being traded to Dallas, where he played in 18 games in 2020-21.

All NBA 2K24 Summer League teams will play five games in Las Vegas. The top four teams will meet in the semifinals on July 16 and the championship game on July 17. The remaining 26 teams will play a fifth game on either July 15 or 16, with the opponent and time to be determined.

The schedule for the first four games of the three Summer League Buffs is below (all times MDT):

Tyler Bey Milwaukee Bucks

Fri., July 7 vs. Denver, 3 p.m., ESPNU
Sat., July 8 vs. Phoenix, 7 p.m., NBATV
Tue. July 11 vs. Brooklyn, 4 p.m., ESPNU
Thursday, July 13, vs. Miami, 3:30 p.m. NBATV

Jabari Walker Portland Trail Blazers

Fri., July 7 vs. Houston, 5 p.m., ESPN
Sun. July 9 vs. San Antonio, 6 p.m., ESPN2
Tue. July 11 vs. Charlotte, 6:30 p.m., NBATV
Thu., July 13 vs. Orlando, 7 p.m., ESPN2

McKinley Wright IV Dallas Mavericks

Sat., July 8 vs. Oklahoma City, 1:30 p.m., ESPN2
Mon., July 10 vs. Philadelphia, 6 p.m., ESPNU
Wed. July 12 vs. Golden State, 3:30 p.m., NBATV
Fri., July 14 vs. Indiana, 4:30 p.m., NBATV