Joe Wieskamp: 2023 Summer League Review
A disappointing performance that ended in him being waived just a few months after joining the Raptors.
The 2023 Summer League was particularly difficult for Joe Wieskamp, the small forward who only really began his summer with the news that he was waived on the eve of his contract fully guaranteeing for just under $2million.
The alternative? Toronto opens up another roster spot and saves $1,927,896 from the yearly bill.
Why was he waived? Well, Summer League. Let’s get into the Joe Wieskamp edition of Summer League reviews.
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Stats
- 4 games played
- 23.9 minutes played per game
- 13 points per game
- 3-of-9 from the floor on average per game (42.9%)
- 1-of-5 from deep on average per game (27%)
- 2 total rebounds per game
- 1 block per game
- 1 turnover per game
- 3 personal fouls per game
Game log
- Game 1 vs. Chicago — 15:33 MIN, 8 points, 2-of-6 from the floor (33.3%), 1-of-3 from deep (33.3%), 2 total rebounds, 1 block
- Game 2 vs. Cleveland — 18:11 MIN, 1 point, 0-of-5 from the floor, 0-of-4 from deep, 3 personal fouls
- Game 3 vs. Detroit — Did Not Play
- Game 4 vs. Brooklyn — 31:47 MIN, 18 points, 5-of-13 from the floor (38.5%), 2-of-9 from 3 (22.2%), 2 total rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 turnovers, 3 personal fouls
- Game 5 vs. Golden State — 29:41 MIN, 27 points, 8-of-11 from the floor (72.7%), 3-of-6 from deep (50%), 2 total rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 5 personal fouls
Notes
- Not good enough: Plain and simple, Wieskamp didn’t prove enough in his opportunity. That doesn’t just apply to the four games in Summer League, but his stint with the main club at the end of last season. Barring a good game in his first outing for Toronto, Wieskamp went on a cold streak from the 3-point line. He never regained that speciality in Vegas.
- Paid to shoot; didn’t prove it: That takes me to my second point: Wieskamp was paid to be able to shoot. We all know Toronto’s woes from deep last season, and ‘Weezy’ was signed to act as a reliever from the bench when the team desperately needed a bucket — and that was very often from 3 — but he just hasn’t proved it. That’s been the most disappointing aspect of this story.
- Didn’t hustle enough: He’s a good rebounder historically, but didn’t grab enough boards in Vegas. He didn’t successfully crash the offensive glass once, on a team that was pretty good at hunting their own misses. For a guy who shot nearly 40 percent from the floor, I was downcast that Wieskamp sometimes didn’t show enough effort.
- Missed opportunity: For my final note, this whole situation has been a missed opportunity on both sides. You get paid (albeit not much) in the NBA to shoot. He has some defense attached to him, it isn’t amazing but it’s something. When you can’t get the shot to fall in the hoop, then things become problematic. Downright unplayable.
I’ll end this review with a quote from my article reacting to the Wieskamp waiving:
I suspect that decision was easy. Despite not usually putting much stock into Summer League performances, Wieskamp’s guarantee date was moved until after the Vegas tournament, so you’d have to think he was given one final chance to prove himself.
Unfortunately for him, he didn’t.
Despite scorching for 27 points in his last dance, Wieskamp averaged 13.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, 0.2 assists, 0.2 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover in 23.9 minutes. For someone entering his third year, you have to dominate in most of your games.
Wieskamp is back to what a large percentage of NBA players do… hop around teams, hoping they are the correct fit for him. He’s already been at San Antonio, Milwaukee, and Toronto (playing in the G-League for each team) and another outfit may be calling Weezy in the near future.
Best of luck to Weezy in the future.
