Ex-Michigan basketball guard Darius Morris starts strong in NBA summer league play

By Nick Baumgardner University of Michigan Sports Reporter

Posted on Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 9:45 a.m.

Former Michigan point guard Darius Morris is off to a strong start this summer with the Los Angeles Lakers.

AnnArbor.com file photo

Thanks to last season's lockout, former Michigan basketball point guard Darius Morris never got the chance to fully showcase his talent in the NBA's annual summer league.

This season, though, he's got a chance to make up for lost time.

In two appearances so far with the Los Angeles Lakers in the Las Vegas Summer League, Morris is averaging a team-best 14 points per game to go along with three rebounds and 2.5 assists.

Morris started both of Los Angeles' first two games, and finished with a team-high 17 points in a loss to Sacramento on Saturday.

The 6-foot-4 former Wolverine point guard recently signed a one-year extension with the Lakers for next season. He's attempting to break into L.A.'s rotation for 2012-13 after spending most of the year in a minor reserve role as a rookie in 2011-12.

Former Michigan big man Courtney Sims finished with four points and five rebounds for the Memphis Grizzlies in the team's summer league-opener on Saturday. Former Michigan guard Manny Harris has not seen action in either of the Houston Rockets' first two games.

Ex-Michigan forward DeShawn Sims, now listed as a member of the Phoenix Suns' squad, did not play in the team's first game.

The Las Vegas Summer League runs through July 22.

Tags: Darius Morris, Wolverines,

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Nick Baumgardner covers Michigan basketball for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2514, by email at nickbaumgardner@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @nickbaumgardner.