NBA Summer League 2026 in Las Vegas Showcased the League’s Changing Landscape
By Matt Issa, Essentially Sports
It all started with an idea.
In 2004, the Vegas iteration of the summer league was born. At the time, only six teams participated in the event (kind of like the California Classic). However, over the years, it has grown to become the marquee event of the summer, with all 30 teams officially joining the fray in 2018 (after the Orlando Summer League was shut down).
Despite their success, Hall and LeGarie are consistently looking for ways to sharpen their craft. Hall likens it to a primary ball handler looking to sharpen their crossover. The best are always finding ways to level up.
“We want to get better off the court while the players/coaches are getting better on the court,” Hart explained. “And we do that by talking directly to people and figuring out the kind of stuff they want from this event.”
Sports Medicine Series
One of their recent innovations over the last couple of years was to create a convention, or “series,” if you will, where people from all over the world can meet up to discuss the latest advancements in sports medicine. Physical Therapists, athletic trainers, strength coaches, sports science physicians, among others, journeyed from all over the world to attend the Sports Medicine Series.
“It’s just like we were talking about us needing to get better. How do trainers get better during the offseason? Simple. Put them in the room with a bunch of the brightest people in the room and let them all bounce their best practices off each other,” Hall said in an exclusive interview.
Of course, given all the other events (like their new film festival) that Hall and LeGarie must oversee, they need to delegate responsibilities to their constituents to maximize their time and the series’ effectiveness. And for this initiative, the duo has entrusted Dani Langford, a rising superstar in the athlete care space, as well as 30-year NBA executive Tommy Sheppard, to shepherd the herd (no pun intended).
“Injuries are always going to be a part of sports,” Sheppard told Essentially Sports over the phone. “But how can we limit those as much as possible?”
“This year, we had professionals from every different sport. MMA, NFL, EPL, Cirque du Soleil. They all seem unrelated, but all of them are connected by the looming presence of injuries. And when you get so many high-minded individuals together in a room collaborating like that, you get some great results,” Sheppard reflected.
Sheppard, who spent two decades in the Washington Wizards’ organization, has been passionate about injury prevention/recovery his whole life. When he was working under Ernie Grunfeld, his job was to identify ways to keep players from getting hurt. And when they did get injured, he needed to help their medical staff come up with treatment plans to get players back to their full form as quickly and cleanly as possible.
