Cody Zeller posts impressive back-to-back games for the Bobcats. (GETTY IMAGES)

LAS VEGAS — You don’t have to be a basketball junkie to love the NBA Summer League, especially if the venue is Las Vegas, Nevada. For the general admission price of $25 you get to watch a slew of games at Thomas & Mack Center and Cox Pavilion, and if you’re paying attention you could bump into some celebrities or NBA executives. That’s like watching four live shows for the same price you would pay for a dinner buffet at Mandalay Bay.

One of the perks of being the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net is I get to make the pilgrimage to Sin City each summer to observe and absorb what is fast becoming one of the best shows on the Vegas Strip. A list of who’s hot and who’s not at the Vegas Summer League.

WHO’S HOT

Jonas Valanciunas — The Toronto Raptors second-year pro looks like he’s added some muscle during the offseason and is ready to start from Day 1. Valanciunas went to work in his first summer league game, dominating the paint and scoring 20 points on just eight shots in the first 20 minutes of the game, most of them coming against Miami Heat center Jarvis Varnado. The 21-year-old Lithuanian averaged 19 points and 10 rebounds a game and named the MVP of the Vegas summer league. If Valanciunas continues to develop, the Raptors could have their center of the present and future to go with wing studs Rudy Gay and DeMar DeRozan.

Cody Zeller — After a rough first game, the former Indiana University standout showed what he’s all about in his second and third games for the Charlotte Bobcats. He posted 21 points and 13 rebounds against the Dallas Mavericks, and then had 18 and 10 against the New York Knicks on 7-for-11 shooting from field. Zellar has been consistently knocking down his 18-20 footer, which makes his drives to the basket even more potent. Charlotte will be a much-improved team for the 2013-14 season led by Zeller, Kemba Walker, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and newly acquired center Al Jefferson. Michael Jordan has finally figured out how this owner thing works.

C.J. McCollum — The Portland Trail Blazers must be doing cartwheels again this offseason after hitting the jackpot for the second straight season after drafting Lehigh star C.J. McCollum. McCollum has been better than advertised, showing a knack for creating offense when set plays break down. Also, his competitive spirit and intangibles are off the charts. He nearly single-handedly brought back the Blazers with 22 points in a tournament game against Phoenix. McCollum scored in a variety of ways, and was very patient coming off high screen-and-rolls. He should provide Portland with another perimeter stud to run with reigning rookie of the year Damian Lillard.

Austin Rivers — What a difference a year makes. At last year’s Vegas summer league, Rivers appeared like a freshman being rushed into an older fraternity. He was trying so hard to fit in that he often made mistakes along the way. This year, however, Rivers looks more comfortable — and quicker. He plays with more force on his forays to the basket and seems to have a better idea on how to attack a defense. Rivers has been playing a lot of point this summer for the New Orleans Pelicans, which leads us to believe that he’ll be the backup to Jrue Holiday or spell Eric Gordon at shooting guard.

WHO’S NOT

Ben McLemore — The Sacramento Kings guard suffered through a rough shooting game in his summer league debut, making just four of 23 shots from the field and looked a bit overwhelmed. He followed that awful performance with an even worse performance in his second game, missing his first seven 3-point attempts and finished the game just 4-for-12 from the field. A lot of McLemore’s 3-point shots weren’t even close to the rim, and some didn’t touch it. He just needs to settle down and move inside the line to get his stroke back.

Otto Porter Jr. — Speaking of struggling to find his stroke, the Washington Wizards forward is in the same boat as McLemore. Porter has been short on most of his misses, which means he’s not getting enough lift on his jumper. He also needs to be a little stronger with the ball as defenders are able to push him out of his favorite spots. Porter has good length and decent athletically, so he should be able to adjust to the pro game in due time.

Myck Kabongo — The former Texas Longhorn went undrafted in June and now we know why. He struggled during the Orlando summer league and he’s struggling again in the Vegas summer league. Kabongo is listed at 6-1 but he looks like he’s south of six feet. His ability to blow by defenders was suppose to be a strength, but he hasn’t shown it enough. And he’s a reluctant shooter, which makes it harder to create floor space. The Miami Heat could still invite Kabongo to training camp, but he will have a hard time supplanting either Mario Chalmers or Norris Cole at the point.

Meyers Leonard — There were scouts and experts who actually thought Leonard was a top-10 player in the 2012 draft. That’s a bit of a head-scratcher because Leonard has draft bust written all over him. He doesn’t rebound well in traffic and doesn’t play big in the middle. He’s very limited offensively and for some reason has fallen in love with the 3-ball. The Blazers have had a string of bad luck when it comes to centers and, unfortunately, Leonard is going to continue this sad tradition. To put in mildly, he’s a poor man’s Frank Brickowski. Sorry, Frank.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

UNLV’s Anthony Bennett, Kentucky’s Nerlens Noel, and Indiana’s Victor Oladipo could have major impacts for their new teams.

The basketball world may have been shocked to see the Cleveland Browns (oops!) … I mean the Cavaliers use the No. 1 overall pick on Anthony Bennett, but back in March OneManFastBreak.net slotted the UNLV freshman forward as the top prospect in the draft. In case you’d like to check, click here.

Even though there is no LeBron James or clear-cut game changer in this year’s draft pool there are still plenty of potential standouts who could turn out to be gems. Some teams know how to find talent and some teams wouldn’t know talent even if it hit them in the head. Those teams that do their homework will be rewarded handsomely. Here are the winners and losers from the 2013 NBA draft:

WINNERS

Cleveland Cavaliers — Anthony Bennett is a great fit for the Cavs. He is a 6-8, 240-pound power forward who can slide down and play some small forward. He complements Cleveland’s guard-heavy squad led by Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters. Cavs coach Mike Brown won’t have to run plays for Bennett, who rebounds well in traffic. Between Bennett and Anderson Varejao, the Cavs should clean up a lot of Irving’s and Waiter’s misses. If Bennett turns out to be another Larry Johnson, then the post-LeBron Cavaliers are back in business. The Cavs also bolstered their outside shooting by selecting Russian 6-7 guard/forward Sergey Karasev later in the first round.

Philadelphia 76ers — Getting Nerlens Noel from New Orleans is great value for the Sixers even though they gave up point guard Jrue Holiday and a second-round pick to get him, league sources told Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski. The look on Noel’s face when he dropped to the No. 6 spot in the draft was priceless. He’ll be extra motivated to prove to everyone that he should have been the top pick.

Orlando Magic — One NBA assistant general manager says Victor Oladipo can defend multiple positions. He has improved every season in college, and has a great work ethic. The Dwyane Wade comparisons is a bit of a reach, but Oladipo is a fearless competitor. His only real weakness is his jump shot. But knowing how hard Oladipo works, he’ll turn his weakness into a strength. Orlando needs help everywhere, and Oladipo is a nice starting point and will mesh well with Orlando’s other young studs like Tobias Harris and Nic Vucevic.

Portland Trail Blazers — The Blazers’ sad draft history has been well documented. This is the team that selected Sam Bowie over Michael Jordan, and picked Greg Oden over Kevin Durant. Last year the Blazers hit the jackpot with Weber State point guard Damian Lillard, who went on to become the rookie of the year. The Blazers feel they hit the Powerball numbers again with the selection of Lehigh’s high-scoring guard C.J. McCollum.

Washington Wizards — Otto Porter Jr. may be the safest pick in this year’s draft. He has all the physical tools, as well as the mental capacity to handle the rigors of being a professional. He plays within himself and has a high basketball IQ. Porter adds another piece to the Wizards’ youth movement, and gives point guard John Wall another young perimeter player to run with.

Charlotte Bobcats — Michael Jordan can’t screw up every pick, and he got this one right. Cody Zeller tested extremely well during the NBA draft combine in Chicago, ranking first in all the agility drills among the big men. Zeller helped rebuild the Indiana Hoosiers program, and Jordan is hoping he would do the same for the Bobcats.

David Stern — Almost 900 names later, the NBA commish made his final draft announcement at the end of the first round and was showered with cheers from the Barclays Center crowd. Deputy commish Adam Silver surprised Stern by bringing back the first name he called in the 1984 draft: Hakeem Olajuwon. It was a real nice touch by the league, giving Stern the proper sendoff after 30 years at the helm.

LOSERS

Boston Celtics — You know the Celtics were having a bad day when Doc Rivers had to step in and defend his former team. ESPN’s Bill Simmons made several jokes about the Celtics’ rebuilding project, which irritated Rivers. Doc fired back by telling Shelley Smith that Simmons is an “idiot” for pounding the C’s on TV. Way to stay classy, Doc. Simmons was basically telling the truth. The Celtics are in total rebuilding mode. They reportedly traded their two best players in Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Brooklyn Nets for Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries, and three future first-round picks. And to put the icing on the cake, the Celtics acquired Gonzaga stiff Kelly Olynyk through a draft day deal with the Mavericks. Olynyk in Canadian means “bust.”

Dallas Mavericks — The Mavs wanted no part of the No. 13 pick, so much so that they got rid of the pick even before Commissioner Stern could say Kelly Olynyk. The Mavs could have taken point guard Dennis Schroeder from Germany. That would have made Dirk Nowitzki happy. Instead they’re clearing the books to make a serious run at All-Star center Dwight Howard, who could be headed to Dallas … or not. You never know with Dwight. He seems to change his mind like a 12-year-old girl shopping for shoes. The Mavs seem to be putting all their tickets in the D12 sweepstakes.

Oklahoma City Thunder — As part of the James Harden deal, the Thunder were awarded the 12th overall selection. This could have been a golden opportunity for general manager Sam Presti to mask the mistake of trading away one of the best young stars of the game. Instead, OKC took Steven Adams. The New Zealander played one unspectacular year in Pittsburgh. He posted pedestrian numbers and the only reason why he climbed in the draft was because of his impressive workouts. Adams is a major-league project, and you don’t take projects with the 12th overall pick. Spanish guard Alex Abrines (taken in the second round) better be good because right now the Harden deal keeps getting worse by the minute for Presti and the Thunder.

Phoenix Suns — Picking Maryland center Alex Len could mean the end of the Marcin Gortat era in Phoenix. Len is an intriguing prospect because of his size and unlimited potential. Len, who turned 20 in June, was a standout for the Ukrainian under-18 squad but he’s no Gortat. Gortat may not be a star, but he is a very good NBA center. Len is still unpolished and probably not ready to start. The Suns are basically back where they started.

Sacramento Kings — For someone who was pegged to go 1-3, Kansas’ Ben McLemore can’t be too pleased he fell this low. And he couldn’t have landed in a worst situation. The Kings are loaded at shooting guard and unless they trade Tyreke Evans, Isaiah Thomas, Marcus Thornton, Tony Douglas, and Jimmer Fredette for a big guy they could easily field a starting five of shooting guards. No wonder the Maloofs wanted to sell the team.

Philadelphia 76ers — After hitting a home run with Noel, the Sixers struck out with their other first-round pick in point guard Michael Carter-Williams. First of all, MCW can’t shoot. That could be a problem. Secondly, he comes from Syracuse and history shows that players from the ‘Cuse struggle in the NBA — with the exception of Carmelo Anthony, of course. Need proof? How about Jonny Flynn, Fab Melo, Hakim Warrick, Wesley Johnson, and Donte Greene. And those are the most recent guys. The bad luck started with Pearl Washington in the early 1980s.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.