The dust has finally settled in the desert. If you spent the last few weeks of July glued to a screen or melting in the Nevada heat, you know the vibe. The 2025 NBA Summer League schedule wasn’t just a series of games; it was a frantic, ten-day look at the future of the league that ended with the Charlotte Hornets hoisting a trophy.
Basketball in July is weird. It’s a mix of desperate undrafted free agents diving for loose balls and first-round picks trying to look like they belong while playing about 60% of their actual capacity. This year was different, though. With Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, and VJ Edgecombe leading the class, the 2025 circuit felt like a legitimate preview of a changing guard.
The July Calendar: How it All Went Down
Honestly, if you weren’t tracking the dates, you probably got lost in the shuffle between the California Classic and the main event. The whole thing kicked off on July 5th. We had two "appetizer" leagues running at the same time: the California Classic in San Francisco and the Salt Lake City Summer League.
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The Warriors hosted the California Classic at Chase Center from July 5 to July 8. It was a small four-team sprint. Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz were doing their thing at the Jon M. Huntsman Center. These games are mostly for the die-hards. You get to see the rookies in their jerseys for the first time, but the real circus doesn't start until everyone moves to the Strip.
The Las Vegas Main Event
The big show—the one everyone actually means when they talk about the 2025 NBA Summer League schedule—took over Las Vegas from July 10 to July 20. All 30 teams showed up. Every team was guaranteed five games. The first four were scheduled right out of the gate (July 10–17), and the fifth was determined by how well (or poorly) they played in those first four.
Opening night in Vegas was a total madhouse. On July 10, the schedule gave us the matchup everyone wanted: Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Thomas & Mack Center was packed. People weren't there for the quality of play; they were there to see if the Flagg hype was real. (Spoiler: It mostly was, even if the shooting was a bit streaky).
Key Matchups and Results We Won't Forget
The 2025 schedule was front-loaded with heavy hitters. After the Flagg-Lakers opener, we got Dylan Harper (San Antonio) versus VJ Edgecombe (Philadelphia) later that same night. It’s rare to see that much lottery talent on the floor at once during Summer League, especially since most top picks shut it down after two or three games.
- The Championship Run: The Charlotte Hornets ended up as the surprise 2025 Summer League champions. They beat the Sacramento Kings in the final on July 20.
- MVP Performance: Kon Knueppel took home the Championship Game MVP. If you had that on your bingo card, you're lying.
- Top Scorer: Kyle Filipowski was a walking bucket for much of the tournament.
The structure of the playoffs was pretty straightforward but harsh. Only the top four teams based on their record from the first four games made the semifinals on July 19. If you weren't in that top four, you got shoved into a "consolation" game on either the 18th, 19th, or 20th. Basically, a "thanks for coming, try again in October" game.
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Where the Games Were Played
If you've never been to Summer League, it’s basically a basketball convention. The 2025 NBA Summer League schedule split its time between two gyms on the UNLV campus: the Thomas & Mack Center and the Cox Pavilion.
They are connected by a concourse. You can literally walk out of a high-stakes (relatively speaking) game in the big arena and wander into a tiny gym where the next star is playing in front of 200 people. It’s the only time you’ll see NBA GMs eating popcorn in the stands next to fans wearing jerseys of players who were traded three years ago.
TV and Streaming: How We Watched
ESPN and NBA TV basically lived in Vegas for those eleven days. Every single one of the 76 games played in Las Vegas was broadcast. Most of the marquee matchups—anything involving the top three picks—landed on ESPN or ESPN2. The morning games and the "I’ve never heard of this guy" matchups usually stayed on NBA TV or ESPN+.
The broadcast schedule was relentless. Games started as early as 12:00 PM PT and ran until 10:00 PM PT. It’s a lot of basketball. Probably too much. But for those of us trying to figure out if our team’s second-round pick is actually a "steal," it’s essential viewing.
What's Next After Summer League?
Now that the 2025 Summer League is over, the real wait begins. The league takes a collective breath in August. We won't see these guys in meaningful action until the 2025-26 regular season tips off on October 21, 2025.
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If you're looking to keep the momentum going, keep an eye out for the official 2025-26 regular season schedule release, which usually happens in mid-August. That’s when we find out when the "real" version of these Summer League matchups will happen.
Pro Tip for 2026: If you’re planning to go next year, book your hotel in February. Once the dates for the 2025 NBA Summer League schedule were confirmed back in May/June, prices on the Strip tripled within 48 hours. Don't get caught paying $400 a night for a room at the Flamingo just to watch a scrimmage.
For now, the best thing to do is watch the condensed replays on the NBA app. Look past the scoring totals. Look at the footwork, the defensive rotations, and how these rookies handled the speed of the pro game. That’s where the real value of Summer League lives.