Inside The Thunder

Thunder Summer League Journal: Tre Mann Part 2

Thunder rookie Tre Mann continues to impress and show flashes of how good he can be at NBA Summer League.

Nick Crain

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Tre Mann continues to impress in his NBA Summer League outings. While his shots still aren’t falling at the rate he’d like them to, Mann has been through shooting slumps before.

"I’ve been through stretches before where I missed shots, the way I got out of it was to keep shooting,” said Mann on Wednesday.

Either way, he did much more than just score to help the team against the New Orleans Pelicans as he stuffed the stat sheet in several categories.

After his second NBA game, Mann admitted he had some nervous jitters pregame in his first NBA contest earlier in the week. With that in mind, he said Wednesday’s game felt different.

“Tonight, I felt a lot more confident,” said Mann.

Box Score

Mann struggled from the floor once again, converting on just four of his 15 shot attempts. He also missed both 3-pointers he took.

However, he was able to produce seven assists and six boards on the night.

After the game, Thunder summer league coach Grant Gibbs gave praise to Mann for his passing.

"I think the seven assists kinda speak to his playmaking,” said Gibbs.

This is a key statistic for Mann, who’s scoring will naturally come but has now shown how much of a playmaker he can be. Additionally, getting six rebounds out of a point guard is excellent for the Thunder.

Defensively, Mann also got one steal and one block on Wednesday against New Orleans.

Play of the Game

For Mann, it’s been tough to pick one single play of the game. He’s a walking highlight reel who is constantly making flashy plays.

However, his best play on Wednesday was one in which he made a series of high-level dribble moves leading to a tough leaning fader over a larger defender.

This was one of several crafty finishes in the paint for the young guard. While his jumper isn’t falling, he’s shown the ability to score at the rim, make floaters, and also work in the midrange.

Room For Improvement

Once again, Mann couldn’t get many shots to fall on Wednesday. However, he showed improvement as a playmaker and rebounder.

Going forward, he still needs to continue working on his ball handling. While there’s plenty of time to improve on this, Mann was too weak with the ball in his hands several times on Wednesday.

Mann knows that he’s just a rookie and will have a limited role early in the season, as many rookies do. However, he’s willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win.

“I’m gonna do what my coaches ask me. Whatever my team needs me to do,” said Mann postgame on Wednesday.

He will get the chance to build upon his first two summer league performances on Friday as the Thunder take on the Warriors.

READ MORE:

Thunder Summer League Journal: Part 1

Aaron Wiggins Vying to be OKC's Next Two-Way Player

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Nick Crain
NICK CRAIN

Nick has spent the last four seasons covering the Oklahoma City Thunder and has grown quickly in the media since starting. He’s continued to produce Thunder content through writing for Forbes.com and podcasting with The Uncontested Podcast, as well as branching out to cover the NBA as a whole for SLAM Online.

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