On one hand, Matt Janning had a training camp invite from the Celtics, who already have 14 players on their roster and that doesn’t even include Luke Harangody (who has yet to be signed). On the other, Janning had a two-year contract offer from the Phoenix Suns with some of that money guaranteed. I think he made the right choice. (Arizona Republic)

The Phoenix Suns signed Northeastern guard Matt Janning to a two-year, minimum-salary contract with a small guarantee Wednesday.

Janning will be in the Suns training camp to compete for a roster spot. Rather than one of the remaining additions being simply a third point guard, Janning would give the Suns a fifth guard with combo guard skills in a 6-foot-5 frame.

Suns Director of Player Personnel Todd Quinter likens Janning’s situation to when Jeff Hornacek was a Suns rookie of little acclaim. He said Janning has an outstanding feel for the game like Hornacek did. But also like Hornacek at that stage, Janning needs to make some tweaks to his shot and improve his strength to match up with NBA guards. He weighed 193 pounds at his Suns draft workout.

I hope Janning starts rubbing his face before every free throw. Seriously though, I was very impressed with one game he played while with the Celtics during summer league. The kid knows how to play and has a lot of physical talent. But there was simply no place for him on the Celtics roster.

I have to admit, I was not sold on Matt Janning when I first saw him. He looked young enough to have his postgame meals at Chuck E. Cheese, and — let’s be honest — there aren’t exactly a lot of white guys who make it in the NBA. So when Janning got a DNP-CD in the C’s second summer league game, I wasn’t at all surprised.

But then I was shocked by Janning’s performance in the next game. He didn’t just play well; he dominated. He didn’t just look like he belonged; he was the best player on the court. And he’s parlayed that one breakout game into a slot in Celtics training camp. (Green Street)

After a brief but impressive stint with the Celtics at Orlando Summer League, Matt Janning has received an invite to be part of their training camp roster this fall, he told WEEI.com.

“They’ve invited me,” he said. “I’ve got to sit down and kind of think about what’s the best opportunity for me.” [...]

“A lot of my friends are like, ‘You’re playing with the Celtics, that’s awesome.’ And it really is,” he said. “I’ve been in Boston the last four years, a little more than that now, watched games down at the Garden, and I’ve seen those guys play, so it’s real nice knowing that I’m close to getting a chance to be part of all that.”

It must be nice to have a great game at the perfect time, huh?

P.S. – Is Janning better than Oliver Lafayette? I don’t know. I haven’t seen enough of either of them. But he’s more athletic (yes, even though he’s white) and probably has a bit more potential.

What do you do after you score 20 points and 8 rebounds in a breakout performance, then get asked by an NBA GM to stick around  for a few days to continue playing?

That’s an easy one to answer: You hop on the next flight to Vegas.

Even though Danny Ainge’s offer to have Janning stay and keep playing for the Celtics summer league team was mighty enticing, Janning’s agent ensured him he couldn’t renege on his commitment to the Phoenix Suns. Janning had already been schedule to play with the Suns in the Las Vegas summer league.

The C’s looked into keeping Janning around a bit longer, but his agent, Frank Catapano, said he couldn’t go back on the commitment to the Suns.

“It’s tough, because obviously you’re looking forward to getting out there and playing a few minutes and seeing everybody else,” Janning said. “But after a day like today, you kind of want to stay and enjoy this trip a little bit.”

I don’t know if Janning will ever make the NBA, but he impressed the hell out of me yesterday.

(Corny caption alert) All fingers were pointing at Matt Janning today.

If I’ve learned one thing from this year’s summer league, it’s that there isn’t much difference between the guys who make it and the ones who don’t. Just ask Matt Janning.

The spindly, 6’4,” baby-faced killer out of Northeastern earned himself a big, fat DNP-CD yesterday. So how did he respond?

By utterly dominating today’s 91-72 Celtics win, of course, scoring just about every way possible and snatching rebounds like he was a center. Janning is bad enough to be benched for an entire game, but good enough to dominate a court full of players who are very nearly NBA-caliber. Janning’s performance today was the NBA summer league at its finest; the league provides an opportunity for overlooked collegians and grizzled vagabonds to show their worth. One day, Janning probably went home from the C’s game crying. The next, he just might have earned himself an invite to some team’s training camp.

If you were to watch the game, you would have been certain that the one guard under contract to the Celtics was Janning — Oliver Lafayette spent the whole game camouflaged, completely blending into the background. While Janning was busy creating the highlight of his life, Lafayette and Tony Gaffney — two other player under contract with the C’s — performed like average players… at best. They both did some good things, don’t get me wrong — Lafayette is smooth going to the hoop and Gaffney continued to impress defensively — but this was Janning’s game.

Janning was supposed to head to Las Vegas to play for the Phoenix Suns’ summer league team. Now he’ll probably stay in Orlando; he’s been asked by the Celtics to stick around. Apparently, they didn’t mind his 20-point, 8-rebound performance. And it wasn’t just the stats that were impressive; it was the way Janning got them. He hit tough shots from outside. He handled the ball nicely. He got past defenders and into the lane, finishing at the rim. He dunked. Wait, he dunked? He looks like Gordon Hayward’s little brother! Yes, he dunked, as surprising as it was. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought Janning had a guaranteed deal for next year.

And that’s what summer league has taught me. The gap between players who make it and those who don’t isn’t an ocean, and it isn’t a river — it’s more like the creek in my neighbor’s backyard. If that. One more DNP-CD for Matt Janning and he would have been headed to Las Vegas tonight, sulking from a miserable experience in Orlando, wondering if he was good enough to compete at the next level.

Instead, he’s flying high after what was probably the best experience of his life. Janning was given an opportunity today and seized it like a drowning person latches on to a buoey. A kid from Northeastern, busting some ass in a Boston Celtics uniform. That’s something special, isn’t it?

And just imagine: He wasn’t good enough to play yesterday. He was this close to being completely overlooked by the Celtics.

But not anymore. Today was Matt Janning’s day to put his name on the map. And I assure you, NBA GMs took notice.

To read my recap of the C’s 87-82 loss in yesterday’s summer league opener, click here. To read reaction from around the Celtics world, read on.

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald - ”It’d be fair to say that Luke Harangody – No. 55 in your program, No. 52 overall in the NBA draft – turned a few heads. The 6-foot-8 forward still looking to secure an NBA contract had 23 points in the 40-minute game, becoming very familiar with the strings at the RDV Sportsplex. Harangody made 9-of-13 shots from the field, connecting on 4-of-6 treys. ‘He’s a good player, and he shot the lights out today,’ said coach Austin Ainge, stepping up from the D-League affiliate in Maine to run the Green. ‘It just kind of came out of the flow, and he has a knack for finding open spots. That’s a skill that’s hard to teach, and he has it.’ Said Harangody: ‘I just got off to a good start shooting. It was nice to hit that first shot as always. It just carried on throughout the game. There’s a lot of things I could have done better obviously, but I think I had a pretty good performance out there. I’m always going to want to do things better.’”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “Oliver Lafayette summed it up pretty well when asked if he expected Harangody to shoot it as well as he did. ‘I really didn’t,’ Lafayette said. ‘I didn’t know he was that good of a shooter. Coming in I was like he’s a good low-post player, nice little mid range. But I didn’t know he could shoot the ball like that. He kind of surprised me in practice. I was like I know I can go to him when I need a bucket.’”

Brendan Jackson, Celtics Hub – “Now, the bad.  For those of you hoping Semih Erden was the answer to the Celtics’ lack of length in the middle, don’t get too excited.  In his first professional game, Erden looked very stiff out there and fell over on his only two moves to the basket.  He also only grabbed 4 rebounds in 22 minutes and was not on the same page with Lafayette on pick-and-rolls.  It’s early in the process but as of right now, give me some Parakhouski over Erden.”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “His translator, Tolga Tugsavul, said Erden hadn’t practiced since the end of the season and would work his way back into condition after the FIBA World Championship in August, which will be in his homeland. ‘He came directly here to learn the system, learn the defensive rules about the referees and everything,’ Tugsavul said. ‘He’s not ready to play for the summer league but he said, ‘I’ll try my best to try to play some defense to help the team.’ He’s more focused for the world championships. But when it’s the end of the world championships, as soon as possible, he will come here to work with the Celtics.’ Erden started at center in the Celtics’ 87-82 summer-league-opening loss to the Thunder last night. He scored 2 points and had four rebounds in 22 minutes. He was hampered by back troubles but said they weren’t serious. ‘Semih was a little banged up today,’ said Celtics summer league coach Austin Ainge. ‘His back was a little sore and he wasn’t moving as well. He’s a legit 7-footer with length and once he learns English a little better and learns what we’re doing a little better I think he’s going to help the Celtics.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPN Boston – “Three players who impressed Monday night: Harangody, Lafayette and Jaycee Carroll. Harangody displayed nice range and, as funky as his shot looks, he made just about everything he put up. Lafayette clearly benefited from the time spent with the C’s during their Finals run and was far and away the best player on the court for the first 25 minutes before fading late. Carroll, a fearless chucker, connected on 6-of-16 shots for 13 points. Artsiom Parakhouski came as advertised. The Belarusian big man logged 18 minutes of court time and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds to go along with four points. His offensive skills need some polishing, but the 6-foot-11 wide body sure knows how to box out and clean up on the glass, which could force Boston’s basketball operations to take a longer look at him. Ryan Thompson did a nice job of not only getting to the free throw line, but connecting on all nine shots he took from the charity stripe while scoring 13 points in 15 minutes.”

Zorgon, Welcome to Loud City – “Some might think that I’m not giving the Celtics enough credit. But until they show me otherwise, they were just your typical, run-of-the-mill Summer League team. They played better than the Thunder because individuals (like Harangody) were putting in great performances, while the Thunder didn’t really care. When the Thunder started playing like a team in the fourth, the Celtics easily crumbled under pressure. [...] On the Celtics side of things, the only players that looked like they had a chance of seeing NBA action were Luke Harangody and Oliver Lafayette. Harangody was an excellent scorer, and Lafayette was a decent all-around guard. ”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “Janning landed in Boston. Celtics summer league coach Austin Ainge, who put the team together along with Ryan McDonough and Leo Papile, had seen Janning on tape last season and then in the predraft workout. ‘The best thing Matt has is his IQ,’ Ainge said. ‘He’s a great passer. He really knows how to find the open guy and make the right decision every time. He’s more athletic than people give him credit for. He’s used to having the ball in his hands. They ran a lot of plays for him last year in the games I watched. He’s pretty good.’”

Betchu didn't recognize Oliver Lafayette.

You know what’s the only thing worse than seeing your team lose a heart-wrenching Game 7 in the NBA Finals? (Just know, I contemplated jumping out the top-floor window as I wrote that sentence.) Having that heart-wrenching loss be the last basketball game you can watch for a while. Because, believe me, there’s nothing worse than baseball season. Watching web gems gets old after, oh, about half an episode of SportsCenter. And watching Lebron drive away from his latest meeting with a free agent suitor? Wake me some time around Halloween, please.

Or just wake me up for 5:00 p.m. tonight. Because while watching Vyacheslav Kortstov, Tony Gaffney, Semih Erden and Oliver Lafayette isn’t exactly the same as cheering for the Huge Cuatro, it’s basketball. And it’s the Celtics. And it gets my juices flowing, regardless of whether I actually recognize any of the players.

It may not be the same as watching Game 7, but at least I won’t need thirteen boxes of tissues if the C’s lose, ya know? And it’s basketball. Professional basketball. And it’s my Celtics, and a few players who could pay dividends either next year or down the road. So I’m excited as hell. I’ve had July 5 circled on my calendar since, well, since the excruciating happenings of June 17. (Hold on: Just slamming the mouse against my head, repeatedly. Okay, I’m back.)

Here’s the C’s summer league roster and a little description of each player:

Tony Gaffney – 6’8″ 215 lbs. (UMass)

A long, athletic hard-worker out of UMass. In college, Gaffney was a 6’8″ center known for punching shots into the 5th row. In the NBA, he’ll have to transition himself into a small forward because he’s too short and thin to play in the post. He has all the physical tools you’d want, but does he have the skill? We’ll see. Like every other guy on the roster, Gaffney is fighting for a contract.

Oliver Lafayette – 6’2″ 190 lbs. (Houston)

I have to admit, I had barely ever heard the name Oliver Lafayette before the Celtics surprised everyone and signed him as the season winded down. Then he made his first NBA action and looked every bit the part of NBA point guard. Last year, Lafayette might have been the first player ever to get cut from the D-League and then called up to the NBA in the same season. And the team that cut him? Lafayette dropped 32 on them later in the season. It hasn’t been confirmed, but I heard he winked at the coach every time he made a basket.

Luke Harangody – 6’8″ 255 lbs. (Notre Dame)

An absolute beast in college and one of the premier players in the Big East. Actually, one of the premier players in the entire country. The only problem? His physical gifts aren’t exactly what most scouts would describe as “gifts.” He’s short, can’t jump, and his feet don’t move laterally like they’re supposed to. Oh yeah, and he has a wingspan that not even Jay Bilas would want to talk about. So can Harangody overcome all that? Can his skill still shine through, even against the best athletes in the world? I wouldn’t bet my life on it. But at least he has Danny Ainge’s solid track record on his side.

Semih Erden – 7’0″ 240 lbs. (Turkey)

His numbers have been far from outstanding in the Turkish League, but the C’s 2008 draft pick DID start for a championship team last season. Still, I’m not so sure I want the best thing I can say about a Celtic to be, “Well, he DID start for the Turkish League champion!” Erden has some tools, but he’s got a long way to go before he’ll become a contributor.

Art Parkahouski – 6’11″ 260 lbs. (Radford)

According to Sports Illustrated, Parkahouski has one goal: “to become the first Belarusian to play in the NBA.” I wouldn’t hold your breath, Art. Then again, maybe he actually has a chance. Parkahouski put up some pretty serious stats last season, averaging 21.4 points and 13.4 rebounds. The drawback? He played at Radford, so those stats were accumulated mostly against players giving up three or four inches to the Belarusian Beast. Bottom line? When you’re 6’11,” 260 pounds and averaged 21/13 in college, there’s probably a pretty good reason why you weren’t drafted.

Rodney Green – 6’5″ 190 lbs. La Salle

A 6’5″ point guard with very good athleticism. Sounds great, right? Until you realize his point guard skills aren’t what they should be, he was hardly an efficient player in college, and he’ll probably play shooting guard in the NBA. If Green can show point guard skills, he’ll have a chance of making the Celtics roster. But it’s a big if, considering he spent his entire college career playing PG and still didn’t demonstrate the skills necessary to run an NBA offense.

Matt Janning – 6’4″ 198 lbs. (Northeastern)

Janning’s a great story: The Northeastern grad chosen to play for the Boston Celtics summer league team. But Janning doesn’t even have a Draft Express profile. I think that should tell us something.

Ryan Thompson – 6’6″ 220 lbs. (Rider)

I’d much rather have his brother, Jason. Still, Ryan had a tremendous Portsmouth Invitational (an invitation-only draft camp for seniors), leading the camp in scoring and shooting an obscene 64.3% from behind the arc. I’d be a little skeptical of his great performance in Portsmouth, though: He was only a 32% three-point shooter in college, while shooting from a shorter arc. Thompson has a well-rounded skill set but doesn’t have one skill that stands out. Plus, he’s only an average athlete.

Ryan Wittman – 6’7″ 215 lbs. (Cornell)

A sweet shooter from Cornell. Can really fill it up, and is a super-smart player. For those of you who remember the old Stanford teams, he kind of reminds me of Casey Jacobsen. Of course, that might just be because they’re both white shooters. Wittman is a step slow for NBA purposes, but can certainly put the ball in the hole.

Vyacheslav Kravtsov – 7’0″ 270 lbs. (Ukraine)

Maybe the most intriguing of all Celtics summer league prospects. I wrote a piece about the seven-foot Ukrainian yesterday, so check it out. I’m excited for the Ukraine Train era.

Jaycee Carroll – 6’2″ 180 lbs. (Utah St.)

It’s a damn shame Jaycee Carroll is only 6’2″ tall and not overly athletic: If he were any taller or any more explosive, Carroll would be one of the NBA’s top shooters. As it is, Carroll has had to settle for being one of the ACB’s best scoring threats. (For those of you who don’t know, the ACB is an extremely competitive professional league in Spain.) Though his size and speed limit his potential impact in the NBA, Carroll can score buckets rolling out of bed.

DeShawn Sims – 6’8″ 225 lbs. (Michigan)

Pretty skilled, decently athletic, solid numbers last season. Sounds a lot like “D-League” or “overseas” to me.

P.S. – Don’t be surprised if Boston gets smacked tonight. The Oklahoma City Thunder are led by James Harden, Eric Maynor and Serge Ibaka — three legitimate NBA rotation players. With the Celtics having absolutely zero rotation players, this one could be a bloodbath. Then again, the Celtics could win by 40. But that’s not what this is all about: It’s summer league, people, so enjoy the action, judge some talent, and relax.