Team Canada Basketball Thread

[mojo13]

Another good week for Brooks and Boucher for Oregon.

Brooks has been steadily moving up the 2017 mock draft lists (now into the first round for NBAdraft.net, still in second round for draftexpress). And Boucher is now listed for the first time (late second round for this year's draft by NBAdraft.net).

Yes...great progress with Brooks. He seems to be getting better and better with each week. And is now in consideration for Pac-12 POY. Jamal Murray is asserting himself as the Alpha on Kentucky which is great to see. He is clearly better than Isiah Briscoe who was very highly regarded coming into the season. I am still a little skeptical on how great Murray will be. Certainly an NBA player, but I am not sure he will be more than a COJO type back-up guard. Which is still great, but not he superstar some people (Canadian bball fans) see.

Witler seems to be coming around too after a slow start to the season. Perhaps that just means he is feeding on weak WCC competition though? I doubt he ends up in the NBA.

XRM seems to be good, but not great...not likely NBA talent in my current opinion.

That is our big 4 for this year....plus Boucher, but I don't know him as well so I was pass on speculating.

[frumble]

A few quick notes:

Dyshawn Pierre has been putting up some good numbers since he was reinstated, and may be a candidate for the senior team if we have to rely on non-NBAers.

Jalen Posyer is not having a great freshman season for UNLV, but in his last two games he has gone 12/21 for 34 points (more points in those two games than in previous 10).


In an article in today's Globe, Olynyk talks about how much the Venezuela loss hurt and about the challenge this summer.

“Those are tough teams with good players, but we’re a tough team with good players as well,” said Olynyk. “We have to go out there and make some noise.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/basketball/olynyk-haunted-by-canadas-olympic-qualifying-defeat-to-venezuela/article28790354/


In recruiting news, some Pac-12 offers to Canadian players. UCLA and Cal looking hard at Abu Kigab (he was in Berkeley for a campus visit and attended Cal's big upset of Oregon a couple weeks ago), and Arizona and Oregon have offered Lindell Wigginton (former Prince Andrew Panther (Dartmouth, NS)).


Lastly, Nick Stauskas has been improving as the season has gone on.

E.g., here are his FG percentages by month:

Oct/Nov 32.8%
Dec 37.7%
Jan 40.5%
Feb 51.5%

Small sample, but maybe he is finding his game.

[TheFutureMM]

If Powell and Nicholson both aren't available then we really need Bennett to play.

Hopefully he will realize that he needs to have a decent tournament to pick-up an NBA contract.

[frumble]

CBS Sports has updated its list of the top 100 players in college hoops.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/25485312/ranking-the-top-100-and-one-players-in-college-basketball-through-three-months

Four Canadians on the list: Boucher (76), Brooks (36), Murray (22), and Wiltjer (15).
Pierre and Jankovic listed among those just missing the top 100, and XRM as having fallen out of the top 100 (from last list, a few weeks ago).

[PoundTown]

Another guy that plays into the core to me is Powell who would seem to offset a guy like olynyk very well. Lyles and Thompson fit well together as do olynyk and Powell. Powell and Thompson being the very mobile defenders and olynyk and Lyles w the versatile inside out offense game w great passing ability as added bonus.

If Murray can become a really strong 2nd option on the perimeter and guys like stauskas and Ennis can remain relevant nba players were talking about a team that is in medal contention year in year out

[mojo13]

One guy who doesn't get talked about enough if you ask me is Khem Birch.

I really believed he should have had an NBA call up last year and this year he is confirming it. He is playing really well in Turkey for Usak Sportif. Putting up great stats, defending well and made the Allstar game. A week or so ago three or four Euroleague teams came calling trying to buy him out of Sportif (Maccabi, Olympiacos and a few others). Usak said no (unfortunately) but it shows how well he is playing.

He may be playing at a higher level than Pangos or Hanlan. Totally different players I know, but trying to make a case that Khem may be our best "non-NBA player" out there. We are deep up front, but this year and the future WC qualifying years where we need to lean on non-NBA players means he should be part of Team Canada somehow.

Pangos seems to still be playing really well for Gran Carnia. Havent heard much about Heslpi, Hanlan or Scrubb over the last few weeks. Some of the Zalgris fans in message boards seem to be quite pleased with Hanlan...but don't think he is NBA calibre.

Anyone have insight on Tyler Ennis's situation? Ennis has been pushed out of the rotation again, and it is a fair bet for Ennis to get his fourth year option declined this offseason.

[WorldChamp]

If Powell and Nicholson both aren't available then we really need Bennett to play.

Hopefully he will realize that he needs to have a decent tournament to pick-up an NBA contract.

Ab will get a contract easily for how much that's another question.

[mojo13]

Really? Easily?

I doubt that....he barely got a contract with the home town Raptors and hasn't done much with it. There are far more impressive players in the D-league and/or Euroleague than Bennett. 50/50 on whether he is in the league next year. Same with Sacre and Nicholson...and Ennis in a year or two as well. The flip side is Ejim and Birch should get a shot at the league.

[TheFutureMM]

Damn, what the hell happened to Andrew Nicholson's playing time?

Looks like he was capitalizing on decent playing time up until the beginning of January then got dropped pretty hard from the rotation. Too bad - with the way he was playing early in the season it looked like he might get a small two year deal with someone.

I feel like he is going to get a one year minimum deal next year with someone kind of like what AB got.

Anthony Bennett is done after this year. I think he could be a good EuroLeague player if given the opportunity - hope that works out for him.

[frumble]

FIBA.com had a story on Joseph yesterday.

http://www.fiba.com/oqt/philippines/2016/news/time-to-move-on-and-reach-rio-olympics-says-canadas-joseph

Re participation:

I don’t want to speak for everybody, but, pretty sure I will be available [to represent my country]. - Joseph

[mojo13]

Damn, what the hell happened to Andrew Nicholson's playing time?

Looks like he was capitalizing on decent playing time up until the beginning of January then got dropped pretty hard from the rotation. Too bad - with the way he was playing early in the season it looked like he might get a small two year deal with someone.

I feel like he is going to get a one year minimum deal next year with someone kind of like what AB got.

Anthony Bennett is done after this year. I think he could be a good EuroLeague player if given the opportunity - hope that works out for him.

There is a real shot at Bennett, Nicholson and Sacre being out of the league next season and Ennis and Stauskas could be close behind them.
Sure would be nice for Murray to be the real deal we are hoping for. Our depth is not necessarily as great as some people think.

[Undefeated]

Anyone knowledgable about Iggy Brazdeikis' game? I know he played with Canada's U16/U17 team this past summer and was wondering if he's getting any offers from D1 programs?

[bozothepope]

Anyone knowledgable about Iggy Brazdeikis' game? I know he played with Canada's U16/U17 team this past summer and was wondering if he's getting any offers from D1 programs?

He must be -- or at least will be. He balled out for Orangeville when they played Oak Hill during All-Star Weekend. He's still pretty young though, so if he hasn't yet, that must be the only reason why.

Edit: Looks like he has at least 1 from Oregon.

[frumble]

There is a real shot at Bennett, Nicholson and Sacre being out of the league next season and Ennis and Stauskas could be close behind them.
Sure would be nice for Murray to be the real deal we are hoping for. Our depth is not necessarily as great as some people think.

And I think that would be good for the National team.

I think the fringe guys would get more playing time, would get valuable international experience, and would have a higher chance of being able to participate in post-2016 qualifying games, if they were playing in Europe instead of riding the pine in the NBA.

[mojo13]

I agree Bennett should head to Europe and refine his game (and confidence).
Jan Veesly is now one of the best players in Europe (and a one man wrecking crew for Czech Rep.) - this after a three year flame-out in the NBA on par with Bennett. It saved Joe Alexander too.

Sacre isn't going to be much more than he already is.

Nicholson I am not sure about....he goes through these couple month runs where he looks like a legit NBA player then disappears. He is fairly old too and I am not sure what more he can become.

Bennett should go now...and take Sim Bhullar with him. Why is Bhullar in the D-league with todays NBA? He is useless to the NBA with todays game .Go play in a league with no defensive three second rule and get paid real money for the few years he can play before his body gives out. Stupid decision. I hate seeing our Canadian boys waste away in the D-league.


By the way there is no guarantee that the Euro clubs will release guys for future WC qualification games either. The Euroleague and FIBA aint on the best of terms.

[Cross-over]

One guy who doesn't get talked about enough if you ask me is Khem Birch.

I really believed he should have had an NBA call up last year and this year he is confirming it. He is playing really well in Turkey for Usak Sportif. Putting up great stats, defending well and made the Allstar game. A week or so ago three or four Euroleague teams came calling trying to buy him out of Sportif (Maccabi, Olympiacos and a few others). Usak said no (unfortunately) but it shows how well he is playing.

He may be playing at a higher level than Pangos or Hanlan. Totally different players I know, but trying to make a case that Khem may be our best "non-NBA player" out there. We are deep up front, but this year and the future WC qualifying years where we need to lean on non-NBA players means he should be part of Team Canada somehow.

Pangos seems to still be playing really well for Gran Carnia. Havent heard much about Heslpi, Hanlan or Scrubb over the last few weeks. Some of the Zalgris fans in message boards seem to be quite pleased with Hanlan...but don't think he is NBA calibre.

Anyone have insight on Tyler Ennis's situation? Ennis has been pushed out of the rotation again, and it is a fair bet for Ennis to get his fourth year option declined this offseason.

Last time I checked he was the leading scorer for Cantu @16.5 a game.

[frumble]

By the way there is no guarantee that the Euro clubs will release guys for future WC qualification games either. The Euroleague and FIBA aint on the best of terms.

Yes, but I think there is still a decent chance that Euro clubs release (vs. no chance that NBA clubs release). Will be very interesting to see how this plays out, and whether this qualification window system lasts.


I agree completely re guys wasting their prime earning years in D-league. Not sure if they are getting bad advice or are just clinging to a dream.

[mojo13]

Very interesting to watch Oregon the last few games. Opposing teams are really trying to take Brooks out of the game with double (and sometimes triple) teams. His stats have obviously crumbled but Oregon is winning as guys are stepping up and taking advantage of the mismatches (Dorsey, Cook, Boucher). Oregon may be able to make some serious noise if this keeps up. Cool to see teams focusing all their efforts on Brooks - I hope he doesn't get too frustrated.

And Murray seems to get better and better week by week. UK should be the best back court in the tournament.

XRM seems to be fading a bit. Wiltjer is still being Wiltjer - yet the Zags are shockingly a bubble team. Dyshawn Pierre has been playing at a constantly high level for Dayton...but I don't think any of these three are NBA material.

For the guys not currently in the NBA who do you think has the best shot at making it? Here is a guess off the top of my head in order of likeliest (not including high-schoolers).
1. Jamal Murray (the only lock)
2. Dillon Brooks (very poor man's Draymond Green?)
3. Khem Birch (elite D and athleticism and improving O gives him a decent shot)
4. Melvin Ejim (versatile small ball 4? he got the highest training camp guarantee of any D-leaguer last year with the Magic. Possible a Jay Crowder type?)
5. Kyle Witljer (elite offense? can his D be better than terrible and get to just bad?)
6. Jordan Bachynski (elite D, size, could fill a back up C role)
7. Kevin Pangos (too small, slow....interestingly he seems to be playing more SG in Spain)
8. Olivier Hanlan
9. Brady Heslip
10. XRM? (another year to become a better PG?)

It gets pretty sketchy from 5 to 10 and beyond....

[arbsn]

Again - does anyone understand the RFA process as it relates to this tournament. Any chance RFAs are signed in time?
As of right now, unless someone says otherwise - I think you have to say all UFAs and RFA likely wont play. I dont think any RFAs or UFAs can sign a contract before July 8th - after the tournement has started. That's an entire team between Canada and France.

I am no expert on the RFA process, but from quick internet research I am not seeing anything that indicates that RFA signing dates are any different than UFA dates - it seems that for all FAs, no negotiation until July 1, and no official contract until July 8.

So, if Powell, Nicholson, Bennett, and Sacre are all unavailable, that leaves us with these main candidates at the 4/5:
Thompson
Olynyk
Lyles
Birch
Anthony (one last hurrah before he retires?)

J. Bachynski (tired of D league and uses tournament to showcase talent for Euro teams?)
Bhullar (same as Bachynski?)
Wiltjer (goes undrafted and uses tournament to showcase talent for Euro teams?)
Jankovic (same as Wiltjer)
Landry
Klassen?

Maybe I should also be counting Ejim and Doornekamp (as undersized 4s).

Am I forgetting anyone of note? Anyone know where Ashaolu is playing this season? Is Kendall taking the season off to spend time with family?

Considering he was responsible for the play that cost us the Olympic birth (stupid loose ball foul on the final posession of the Ven game), Doornekamp should not have a spot on this team. He was on our team as a veteran presence but ended up making a bone headed play at the tournament defining moment.

[Ell Curry]

Damn, what the hell happened to Andrew Nicholson's playing time?

Looks like he was capitalizing on decent playing time up until the beginning of January then got dropped pretty hard from the rotation. Too bad - with the way he was playing early in the season it looked like he might get a small two year deal with someone.

I feel like he is going to get a one year minimum deal next year with someone kind of like what AB got.

Anthony Bennett is done after this year. I think he could be a good EuroLeague player if given the opportunity - hope that works out for him.

There is a real shot at Bennett, Nicholson and Sacre being out of the league next season and Ennis and Stauskas could be close behind them.
Sure would be nice for Murray to be the real deal we are hoping for. Our depth is not necessarily as great as some people think.

Nicholson is hitting 3s at a decent clip for a big (1.6 per 36 minutes, on 34.7%). I'd be surprised if he doesn't at least get a minimum offer to be a stretch 4 on a 2nd unit somewhere.

Totally agree about Murray. Joseph-Murray-Wiggins-Lyles-Thompson looks like a nice starting 5 to me, with 2 ball handlers, a scorer in Wiggins, stretch 4 in Lyles and a mobile banger in Thompson. And Powell and Olynyk are pretty good backup bigs, if lacking in rim protection. But the 3 perimeter spots are looking ugly. The hope was that Stauskas and Ennis would be solid NBA backups, but that's not looking too likely at the moment. And there aren't anything close to Wiggins or Murray level prospects in the 16 or 17 recruting classes, right?