Monday's Summer League action in Salt Lake City featured a fantastic showing between two of the top picks in the 2026 NBA Draft: Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer.
Monday's Summer League action in Salt Lake City featured a fantastic showing between two of the top picks in the 2026 NBA Draft: Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer.
While both players looked like future stars in the clash, Peterson stole the show, and after the game, he admitted that he had motivation going up against Boozer.
Peterson, the No. 2 pick in the draft, said that he's always looking to find motivation against his opponents, and in this case, he explained that the draft results were a motivating factor as he went up against Boozer, the No. 3 pick.
Peterson, already coming off an impressive Summer League debut, put on a show against Boozer and the Grizzlies. He finished with 25 points and 12 assists while shooting 8-for-15 from the field and 3-for-9 from beyond the arc.
A couple days earlier, he opened his Summer League stint by dropping 28 points against the Atlanta Hawks.
But Boozer's performance against Peterson and the Jazz can't be written off. The No. 3 pick stuffed the stat sheet with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists while shooting 6-for-9 from the field and 4-for-5 from long range.
He also had a solid Summer League debut last week before facing Peterson. Boozer had 15 points, four rebounds and four assists in his Summer League opener and enjoyed an efficient shooting night.
All in all, both players have been very impressive in Summer League action so far. While Summer League competition isn't the exact same as going up against traditional NBA rotations, the experience is still invaluable and gives youngsters valuable reps in an NBA setting.
As Summer League play in Salt Lake City wraps up, attention will shift to Las Vegas where the action will continue. The Jazz and Grizzlies, like every other team in the league, will have several games to develop and evaluate their Summer League guys in Vegas, which could help in making roster decisions as the actual season gets closer.
In addition, while Peterson and Boozer have earned a lot of the attention so far this summer, No. 1 overall pick AJ Dybantsa is yet to make his Summer League debut. That will change in Vegas, which will give fans a fantastic chance to get a look at the top of the draft class in the coming days.
Peterson's comments on Boozer show that he's a competitor, and it will be interesting to see if the two players develop a bit of a rivalry over the years.
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