UH alum Hepa earns spot in NBA summer league
University of Hawaii basketball coach Eran Ganot said former Rainbow Warrior Kamaka Hepa is on an upward path in his post-college journey.
“He’s a guy whose arrow keeps rising, and that’s going to continue for him,” Ganot said of the versatile forward, who will play for the New Orleans Pelicans in the upcoming NBA 2K24 Summer League starting Friday. “He’s one of those guys who’s guaranteed to be successful in life. It’s going to be fun to watch his journey from afar.”
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Hepa, who also had a pre-draft workout with the Golden State Warriors, was offered a spot on the Pelicans’ summer team as an undrafted free agent. The round robin portion of the summer league will run from Friday through July 14 at the Thomas &Mack Center on the UNLV campus in Las Vegas. The games will air on the ESPN networks and NBA TV.
“It’s all about jump, progress and momentum, ” Ganot said. “We always felt—and still do—about how strong his future is.”
At 6 feet 10 with a 7-foot wing span, Hepa has been used as a wing, stretch four and hybrid five. Ganot marveled at Hepa’s shooting range, defensive ability and intelligence. Hepa, who worked for Bank of Hawaii last semester, earned an MBA in May.
“I’ve talked at length at how great a human being he is,” Ganot said. “His character. His work ethic. His intelligence. His leadership. When you combine that with his talent, this is a skilled individual with great size and length. … The best is yet to come. And that’s a great thing for a guy who has accomplished a lot.”
Hepa grew up in Alaska but graduated from a high school in Portland. Hepa played in 60 games—12 starts—in three years at the University of Texas, where he earned a bachelor’s degree. Hepa was a co-captain in each of his two UH seasons. He started all 60 games.
Last season, he led the Rainbows in 3-point makes (67), 3-point accuracy (38.7 %) and rebound average (6.6 per game). He averaged 11.5 points per game and earned All-Big West honorable mention. In his two seasons at UH, Hepa’s 3-point accuracy was 39.1%.
Hepa and New Orleans will begin summer league play on Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves, followed by games against the Golden State Warriors (Sunday), Phoenix Suns (July 11), and Charlotte Hornets (July 13). The date and opponent for the Pelicans’ fifth game will be determined by the results of the first four games.
No. 1 NBA Draft pick Victor Wembanyama, considered the best prospect since LeBron James, is scheduled to debut with the San Antonio Spurs in the Las Vegas after skipping the Sacramento California Classic, which opened Monday and wraps up Wednesday. Wembanyama could make his NBA debut Friday against the Charlotte Hornets and No. 2 pick Brandon Miller.
The 18th NBA summer league will feature all 30 NBA teams playing five games each. After every team plays four games, the top four teams will advance to the semifinals on July 16. The two winning teams from the semifinal games will meet in the championship game on July 17. The 26 teams that do not advance to the four-team playoff will play a fifth game on either July 15 or July 16.
