Warriors' LJ Cryer is a name to know in the no-name summer league

San Francisco Chronicle​

07-07-2025

Chances are, LJ Cryer will light up NBA summer play, make a nice impression, then disappear back into the vast sea of players scuffling for a check and a chance in the G League, in Europe, in Asia, in Parts Unknown.
Still, it's fun to adopt a player every summer, keep on an eye on him, and Cryer is my guy.
He lit up Chase Center on Sunday for the Golden State Warriors in the ambitiously named California Classic. The 6-1 guard from Houston led the Warriors with 19 points, hitting 5-of-7 3-pointers. After two games, Cryer is 7-for-10 from 3-land.
The summer leagues, in San Francisco and then in Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, are a chaotic and fascinating showcase. A few players have NBA roster spots locked up, by virtue of their elite draft status, but it's mostly a storm-tossed boatload of dreamers and desperados.
There's a frantic aspect to the play. Too many guys on the rosters, so you have only a few minutes to show your stuff. No rebound goes uncontested. Full-court pressure is the norm. You're trying to impress scouts and coaches with your team play, yet you know the names of only two or three of your teammates.
Every player has a story.
Look, there's Bronny James, an ongoing magnet for fascination, scorn and sympathy with the Lakers. You wonder whether he would have had an easier time on his basketball journey if Mom and Dad had named him Fred.
Look, there's another kid playing in dad's shadow, Jameer Nelson Jr. Dad played 14 NBA seasons, son went undrafted, played in the G League and in Canada. (Canada?)
Look, there's Miami Heat second year center Kel'el Ware, who is a summer league god, the rare guy you'll see out here who started 36 games in the NBA last season and averaged 9.3 points and 7.4 rebounds.
San Francisco's little four-team summer extravaganza features about 80 players, 75 of whom will soon continue their wandering in the global hoops wilderness.
How to grab an NBA roster spot and avoid slipping back into that churning meat market? One way is to microwave some points, like my guy Cryer did Sunday.
Not to get too deep into his story, because you might never read his name again, but Cryer played five seasons of college ball, the first three at Baylor and the last two at Houston. He scored a game-high 19 in the Cougars' NCAA title-game loss to Florida. For the season, he shot a Big 12-leading 42.4% from 3-land.
Then he went undrafted. Maybe because he's too short at 6-1, and too old at 24, thus has a limited upside, it would seem.
Ah, but in my short conversation with Cryer, I learn why he spent so many years in college. Bad feet! He had stress fracture problems that required four surgeries over the years, one involving a graft from his hip. He says his feet are all fixed, good to go.
The foot woes had limited his offseason activity, preventing him from spending summers in pickup action with NBA players. So this level of play is new to Cryer, making his debut all the more intriguing.
'Cryer's pretty impressive,' said Lainn Wilson, the Warriors' summer league coach. 'Pretty tough player, obviously he can really get his shot off and really go on a heater a little bit. For this to be his first couple games of pro basketball, he's been really impressive.'
Cryer didn't seem overwhelmed. 'It's a lot different from college, for sure,' he said. 'Lot faster, everybody out here in the summer pickin' up full-court, trying to cause havoc, trying to speed you up, (I) definitely gotta get used to it.'
Quick adjuster. The Classic games were Cryer's first experience shooting behind the NBA arc, which is about a foot and a half deeper than the college line. No problem. In college, he said, he found that the farther behind the arc he shot, the more spacing he provided for teammates.
I picture Cryer stepping into the Buddy Hield role of sniper off the bench. Cryer, potentially, has a deeper repertoire of shots than Hield, is more athletic, and likes to slash to the hoop and draw fouls. But right now it's all just theory and potential. Right now, Cryer can't carry Buddy's jock.
Most likely, Cryer will be suiting up for G League affiliate Santa Cruz, coached by Wilson.
'I'm a big believer in being where your feet are,' Cryer said, 'so if that's with the Warriors, or the Santa Cruz Warriors, I'm gonna go out there and give my all. … Whenever you give your all, I feel like good things happen.'
That's not what the odds say. Undrafted rookies just out of college seldom make the Warriors' roster. The short list includes Ky Bowman (2019), Kent Bazemore (2012), Jeremy Lin (2010), Anthony Morrow (2008) and John Starks (1998).
But you never know. More so than ever, the NBA is a shooter's league, and the Warriors are a shooter's team in need of at least one more shooter, and Cryer can shoot.
That's my case, that's my guy.