U16 FIBA Americas: Team Canada preview
Posted: Fri May 31, 2019 1:19 pm
While the Raptors are making history in the NBA finals, a much younger Canadian team will be playing for gold starting Monday in the FIBA Americas U16 championship. First chance to see these young talents playing some of the best talent in the world.
I have quite a bit to say, so this is going to be a long read. It’s written for those who are really interested in players from these young ages and the potential of players in this age group.
CHAMPIONSHIP LOCATION, DRAWS, AND SCHEDULE
The championship will take place in Belem, Brazil (June 3-9) and the four top teams will qualify for the FIBA U17 World Cup next summer.
Canada is in Group B, together with hosts Brazil, Puerto Rico, and Uruguay. We will play three games in the preliminary group stage: Uruguay (June 3), Brazil (June 4), and Puerto Rico (June 5). Then there’s a one-day break before the quarterfinals (#1 against #4 from the other group; #2 against #3), the semis, and the final on the 7th, 8th and 9th. Altogether, 6 games in 7 days. All games are streamed on the championship website:
http://www.fiba.basketball/u16americas/2019/news/canada-select-12-player-roster-for-u16-americas-championship
A BIT OF HISTORY
Canada has never won the U16 American championships. But in the last two championships it has taken over from Argentina as the second-best team in the Americas and tournament finalist. Still, this does not mean that our talent level is always the same.
The 2015 cadet team for the FIBA Americas championship was one of the most talented youth teams in Canadian history. More talented than the team that won the U19 world championship in 2017. Maybe on par with the 2009 U19 team (CoJo, TT, and Olynyk), the 2010 U17 team (Wiggins, Bennet, Pangos, Pierre, and Notice), and the 2016 U18 one (SGA, NAW, Wigginton, and Brissett).
That 2015 cadet team included RJ Barret, Simi Shittu, Iggy Brazdeikis, and Andrew Nembhard, as well as the likes of Danilo Djuricic, Noah Kirkwood, Jaelin Llewellyn, and Marcus Carr. It easily won its four first games by an average margin of about 40 points. Then it stunned the US team (Wendell Carter Jr., Kevin Knox, Tre Jones, Gary Trent, Markus Howard) with an early 19:3 lead at the end of the first quarter and continued to lead through the end of the third quarter. But eventually, the US size and mainly its depth were too much in the fourth and the Americans finished with the gold.
How about the Canadian team for the 2017 U16 FIBA Americas? Well, despite a similar final standing, that was one of the weakest teams I can remember, due to a mix of less-talented classes (2020 and 2021 are not our best) and some significant no-shows (Patterson, Alexander-Moncrieff, Hemmings). That team seriously lacked size, athleticism, outside shooting, and perhaps most of all shot-creators. What we had was still enough to reach the gold medal game, but some of the games were uncomfortably close. And then, in the gold medal game, Canada was destroyed by a much bigger, much more athletic, and MUCH more talented US team. The game ended with a margin of 50, but it was an unpleasant experience and felt like the Americans could have made it +80 if they really needed to. The US team featured 12 players with NBA potential. Team Canada? In all honesty, I would be surprised if any of the players on that team will eventually make it to the league.
SO WHAT ARE WE GETTING IN 2019?
Always hard to say at such an early stage, as players are so young and haven’t been tested. but I would wager that the young Canadian team for this tournament is going to look more like the 2015 team than to the 2017 one.
In my (admittedly very early) estimate, the 2022-2023 classes have 5-6 guys with NBA potential, which is more or less on par with that 2015 team. But not all of them will play at this coming U16 championship. That includes the most well-known prospect of this age group, Elijah Fisher. I’ll write more about some of these prospects in a bit.
The full roster from Basketball Canada (I do think some of the heights are a bit off):
Enoch Boakye 6’9" Brampton, ON Brampton Centennial S.S.
Jaden Clayton 5’11" Whitby, ON Andrews Osbourne Academy
Josiah Davis 6’1" Kitchener, ON Huron Heights S.S.
Caleb Houstan 6’9" Mississauga, ON Montverde Academy
Luke Hunger 6’8" Montreal, QC Ashbury College
Dorile (DJ) Jackson 6’3" Mississauga, ON St. Martin S.S
Dylan Kalambay 6’7" Brampton, ON St. Edmund Campion C.S.S
Leonard Miller 6’5" Scarborough, ON Thornlea S.S
Ryan Nembhard 5’11" Aurora, ON Montverde Academy
Shaedon Sharpe 6’3" London, ON H.B. Beal S.S
Caelum Swanton-Rodger 6’9" Calgary, AB Sir Winston Churchill S.S
Jayden Webley 6’9" Calgary, AB Montverde Academy
I have quite a bit to say, so this is going to be a long read. It’s written for those who are really interested in players from these young ages and the potential of players in this age group.
CHAMPIONSHIP LOCATION, DRAWS, AND SCHEDULE
The championship will take place in Belem, Brazil (June 3-9) and the four top teams will qualify for the FIBA U17 World Cup next summer.
Canada is in Group B, together with hosts Brazil, Puerto Rico, and Uruguay. We will play three games in the preliminary group stage: Uruguay (June 3), Brazil (June 4), and Puerto Rico (June 5). Then there’s a one-day break before the quarterfinals (#1 against #4 from the other group; #2 against #3), the semis, and the final on the 7th, 8th and 9th. Altogether, 6 games in 7 days. All games are streamed on the championship website:
http://www.fiba.basketball/u16americas/2019/news/canada-select-12-player-roster-for-u16-americas-championship
A BIT OF HISTORY
Canada has never won the U16 American championships. But in the last two championships it has taken over from Argentina as the second-best team in the Americas and tournament finalist. Still, this does not mean that our talent level is always the same.
The 2015 cadet team for the FIBA Americas championship was one of the most talented youth teams in Canadian history. More talented than the team that won the U19 world championship in 2017. Maybe on par with the 2009 U19 team (CoJo, TT, and Olynyk), the 2010 U17 team (Wiggins, Bennet, Pangos, Pierre, and Notice), and the 2016 U18 one (SGA, NAW, Wigginton, and Brissett).
That 2015 cadet team included RJ Barret, Simi Shittu, Iggy Brazdeikis, and Andrew Nembhard, as well as the likes of Danilo Djuricic, Noah Kirkwood, Jaelin Llewellyn, and Marcus Carr. It easily won its four first games by an average margin of about 40 points. Then it stunned the US team (Wendell Carter Jr., Kevin Knox, Tre Jones, Gary Trent, Markus Howard) with an early 19:3 lead at the end of the first quarter and continued to lead through the end of the third quarter. But eventually, the US size and mainly its depth were too much in the fourth and the Americans finished with the gold.
How about the Canadian team for the 2017 U16 FIBA Americas? Well, despite a similar final standing, that was one of the weakest teams I can remember, due to a mix of less-talented classes (2020 and 2021 are not our best) and some significant no-shows (Patterson, Alexander-Moncrieff, Hemmings). That team seriously lacked size, athleticism, outside shooting, and perhaps most of all shot-creators. What we had was still enough to reach the gold medal game, but some of the games were uncomfortably close. And then, in the gold medal game, Canada was destroyed by a much bigger, much more athletic, and MUCH more talented US team. The game ended with a margin of 50, but it was an unpleasant experience and felt like the Americans could have made it +80 if they really needed to. The US team featured 12 players with NBA potential. Team Canada? In all honesty, I would be surprised if any of the players on that team will eventually make it to the league.
SO WHAT ARE WE GETTING IN 2019?
Always hard to say at such an early stage, as players are so young and haven’t been tested. but I would wager that the young Canadian team for this tournament is going to look more like the 2015 team than to the 2017 one.
In my (admittedly very early) estimate, the 2022-2023 classes have 5-6 guys with NBA potential, which is more or less on par with that 2015 team. But not all of them will play at this coming U16 championship. That includes the most well-known prospect of this age group, Elijah Fisher. I’ll write more about some of these prospects in a bit.
The full roster from Basketball Canada (I do think some of the heights are a bit off):
Enoch Boakye 6’9" Brampton, ON Brampton Centennial S.S.
Jaden Clayton 5’11" Whitby, ON Andrews Osbourne Academy
Josiah Davis 6’1" Kitchener, ON Huron Heights S.S.
Caleb Houstan 6’9" Mississauga, ON Montverde Academy
Luke Hunger 6’8" Montreal, QC Ashbury College
Dorile (DJ) Jackson 6’3" Mississauga, ON St. Martin S.S
Dylan Kalambay 6’7" Brampton, ON St. Edmund Campion C.S.S
Leonard Miller 6’5" Scarborough, ON Thornlea S.S
Ryan Nembhard 5’11" Aurora, ON Montverde Academy
Shaedon Sharpe 6’3" London, ON H.B. Beal S.S
Caelum Swanton-Rodger 6’9" Calgary, AB Sir Winston Churchill S.S
Jayden Webley 6’9" Calgary, AB Montverde Academy