The round of 16 in the NBA Summer League playoffs saved the best for last, as the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers staged a thriller highlighted by a huge game from Cavs guard Jordan McRae as he and second-round pick Kay Felder dueled the No. 2 picks the past two years, Brandon Ingram and D'Angelo Russell of the Lakers.
Here are grades for Ingram, McRae and Russell as well as other select players from Thursday's action.
Dragan Bender, Phoenix Suns: C-plus
With Marquese Chriss sitting out Thursday's game, Bender got a chance to start at power forward. Still, he spent most of his time on the perimeter and again struggled to find the range from beyond the arc. Bender's 2-of-9 effort dropped his 3-point percentage in Las Vegas to 28 percent. This was his best rebounding game, with nine boards, but Bender struggled with some early entry passes and committed five turnovers.
Petr Cornelie, Denver Nuggets: B-minus
The Nuggets have mined Europe for promising rookie centers the past two years (Jusuf Nurkic and Nikola Jokic), and while Cornelie is unlikely to come over this year, he could be a third. The No. 53 pick has shown flashes of potential during summer league. He moves well and catches the ball on the run, making him a good roll man in the pick-and-roll. Cornelie also has notional range. He did make a 3-pointer earlier in the week before airballing his only attempt Thursday and will block a shot. Cornelie needs to add strength to deal with NBA opponents and improve his finishing, having made just 44.8 percent of his 2-point attempts.
Kay Felder, Cavaliers: B
For the second consecutive game, Felder was quiet for three and a half quarters before taking over in the fourth. He scored seven points between the 2:42 and 1:20 marks of the final period, helping Cleveland maintain the lead. Those scores came out of the pick-and-roll, where Felder is equally capable of pulling up or getting to the basket, and he did a good job of defending Russell at the other end. However, he had a couple of bad turnovers in the fourth quarter: an eight-second violation when he lost track of the shot clock and an attempted crosscourt pass in the final minute.
Jimmer Fredette, Nuggets: C
After making seven of his 14 3-point attempts the past two games, Fredette missed all four he tried Thursday night. Without those points, his efficiency sank. Fredette needed 11 field goal attempts and six free throws to score 12 points. More problematic is that Fredette just hasn't shown the skills needed to stick in the NBA as a role player. His best skill remains the ability to create his own offense, and teams don't particularly need that out of a player on the end of the bench.
Brandon Ingram, Lakers: B
Oddly for a player who shot 41 percent from 3-point range in his lone season in college, the weakest part of Ingram's game this week in Las Vegas has been outside shooting. He finally made a 3 after missing all six he tried in his first three games, but finished 2-of-7 beyond the arc. Still, Ingram showed ballhandling and playmaking skills that weren't evident at Duke, connecting with center Ivica Zubac on an alley-oop and pulling off an impressive in-and-out dribble in transition before missing the layup. The Lakers used Ingram at power forward with the second unit, a spot where he could be effective as he adds strength.
Jordan McRae, Cavaliers: A
As well as just about anyone in summer league, McRae gets buckets. He scored 14 points in the first quarter -- including seven in the last 1:24 -- leading the Cavaliers to put the ball in his hands and play Felder largely off the ball until the stretch run. McRae couldn't stay that hot, naturally, but he got where he wanted on the court, mostly to the hoop. McRae got to the free throw line 13 times and was 12-of-22 from the field to finish with 36 points. He didn't have any assists, however. McRae isn't necessarily selfish, but he doesn't have a knack for setting up teammates.
Jamal Murray, Nuggets: B-plus
Murray had his most efficient offensive game Thursday, scoring 20 points on 13 shot attempts and four free throws. Most of those came out of the pick-and-roll, where Murray displays preternatural ability to get the defender on his hip and create space for a pull-up. He continues to look for his shot first and to set up teammates second, though his one assist against the Utah Jazz was a beauty -- a pocket pass to a diving Cornelie for a dunk. I've also been pleasantly surprised by Murray's ability to compete defensively given his reputation as a liability at that end.
Kelly Oubre Jr., Washington Wizards: B
For the Wizards, this summer league is basically all about Oubre, the only player on their Vegas roster certain to play for them during the regular season. So the offense is running through Oubre, who has averaged just a hair fewer than 20 points per game. He still scored with reasonable efficiency despite struggling from 3-point range before making three of his six attempts Thursday, showcasing a smooth stroke. When creating off the dribble, Oubre has a bad habit of forcing things in traffic instead of moving the ball. That resulted in four turnovers Thursday, bringing his total to 14 through four games.
D'Angelo Russell, Lakers: B
Russell had mixed results in the Lakers' loss. On the plus side, this was probably his best game in Vegas as a playmaker. Russell had more good passes than his four assists would indicate, making the right read when the Cavaliers trapped him off the pick-and-roll. The downside was Russell's 3-point shot no longer dropped. He missed six of eight attempts beyond the arc and scored just 19 points on 20 shot attempts.
Tyler Ulis, Suns: B-plus
Though the Suns' other two 2016 draft picks were taken in the first round, Ulis has been the best of the three in Vegas. He scored a summer-league high 20 points Thursday, making key plays down the stretch as Phoenix held off Miami. Ulis has shown the ability to make defenses pay for dropping too far on the pick-and-roll by making pull-up jumpers, and when he draws help he's skilled at finding teammates. He had eight assists Thursday, though just one steal after contributing 14 in his first three games.
Briante Weber, Miami Heat: B-minus
With Josh Richardson and Justise Winslow long done for the summer and Rodney McGruder out Thursday with a hip contusion, Weber was the only player in action with the Heat who has much chance of making Miami's regular-season roster. He's ready to contribute defensively. The NCAA's all-time leader in steals, Weber had just one Thursday, bringing his average this summer down to 3.9 per game. The key for Weber is developing as a point guard, and he's flashed improved playmaking chops at times in Vegas. Scoring efficiently remains a challenge for Weber, who shot 6-of-17 from the field.