Team Canada Basketball Thread

[mojo13]

Sigh... I guess I'll post it because everything in this thread is typically very negative in regards to him. Andrew Wiggins went for 29 and ruined my Saturday night. Two massive dunks on Poeltl.

Watch on YouTube

Wiggins has obviously had a down year, particularly with his shooting percentages, but there's also no question that the arrival of Butler (and to a lesser extent Teague) has reduced his scoring opportunities. His shot attempts are down from 19.1 a game to 15.6 a game, with a corresponding drop in free throw attempts.

But games like this without Butler, where he's forced to be a more aggressive scorer, show that the talent is still definitely there. I only hope that he learns a few things about hard work (and defence) from Butler so that when his opportunity comes again to be the lead scorer on a team, either with the Wolves or some other team, he'll be a more efficient and better player.

Even in this down year, Wiggins is better than Derozan at age 22 in almost every statistical category except free throw shooting.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2018&player_id2_hint=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2_select=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2=derozde01&y2=2012

Their 21 year old seasons difference is even more pronounced.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2017&player_id2_hint=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2_select=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2=derozde01&y2=2011

Wiggins’s main issue seems the unrealistic expections that come with being the #1 overall pick.

Wiggins versus Jamal Murray is an interesting comparison.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2016&player_id2_hint=Jamal+Murray&player_id2_select=Jamal+Murray&player_id2=murraja01&idx=players&y2=2018

Personally I’m very excited about both and what Canada can with them on the floor together.


It’s time to change the narrative on Wiggins (and Towns)
https://dunkingwithwolves.com/2018/01/20/its-time-to-change-the-narrative-on-wiggins-and-towns/

[aminiaturebuddha]

Sigh... I guess I'll post it because everything in this thread is typically very negative in regards to him. Andrew Wiggins went for 29 and ruined my Saturday night. Two massive dunks on Poeltl.

Watch on YouTube

Wiggins has obviously had a down year, particularly with his shooting percentages, but there's also no question that the arrival of Butler (and to a lesser extent Teague) has reduced his scoring opportunities. His shot attempts are down from 19.1 a game to 15.6 a game, with a corresponding drop in free throw attempts.

But games like this without Butler, where he's forced to be a more aggressive scorer, show that the talent is still definitely there. I only hope that he learns a few things about hard work (and defence) from Butler so that when his opportunity comes again to be the lead scorer on a team, either with the Wolves or some other team, he'll be a more efficient and better player.

Even in this down year, Wiggins is better than Derozan at age 22 in almost every statistical category except free throw shooting.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2018&player_id2_hint=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2_select=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2=derozde01&y2=2012

Their 21 year old seasons difference is even more pronounced.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2017&player_id2_hint=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2_select=DeMar+DeRozan&player_id2=derozde01&y2=2011

Wiggins’s main issue seems the unrealistic expections that come with being the #1 overall pick.

Wiggins versus Jamal Murray is an interesting comparison.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2016&player_id2_hint=Jamal+Murray&player_id2_select=Jamal+Murray&player_id2=murraja01&idx=players&y2=2018

Personally I’m very excited about both and what Canada can with them on the floor together.


It’s time to change the narrative on Wiggins (and Towns)
https://dunkingwithwolves.com/2018/01/20/its-time-to-change-the-narrative-on-wiggins-and-towns/

I'm with you on being one of the more pro-Wiggins people on this thread. He's still so young and with lots of room to grow.

I've never been particularly concerned about his defence. With his physical tools and some good coaching, in time he'll grow to become at least an average defender, and probably much better than that. Likewise, his shooting, particularly from beyond the 3-point line, doesn't bother me because his form is excellent. I think that, too, will improve with time.

The one area where I wish I would have seen more from him by this point is as a playmaker. Even this year, when he's had to sacrifice shots, I thought it might come with an increase in his assist percentage (or even raw assist numbers), but those have actually dropped significantly as well. If we can ever get a full team Canada together, he's going to need to be able to fit in and help make guys like Murray, Olynyk and Lyles better, and not just get his own shots when they come.

That said, I still agree that the prospect of having offensive talents like Wiggins, Murray, Olynyk, Lyles, Stauskas, Pangos, etc. playing together is thrilling, and Wiggins will be a big part of that. Now, maybe some of Drake's $2 million can be put to good use to build a professional national team program so we can actually qualify for the games that matter in coming years.

[frumble]

Cadougan played his first game of the season in the NBL last night. I'm actually going to see him play in person tomorrow - I'll let everyone know how he looks. I've always been rather unimpressed with his game to be honest - I have to think we can come up with a better option, but he frequently pops up with the SMNT and you'd have to assume he's going to be considered if we have a need for PG depth.

Justin Edwards is in South Korea - he was "purchased" from an Italian top division club mid season after a strong start. He is playing solid in Korea and could be available. I think Cadougan is still hurt, but not sure - he doesnt really move my needle, but could be a decent, boring PG backup if healthy.

I agree with both of you. Cadougan hasn't been impressive or moved the needle since he was about 16.
But who else is there? Assuming no Scrubb, we need a 4th and 5th behind Hanlan, XRM, and Heslip. I really doubt Rautins re-joins the program, or Naz Long makes himself available yet again, so we are looking at two of:
Keane
Cadougan
Edwards
Notice
???

Duance Notice was with a club in the Polish top division. His stats were unimpressive and doesn't seem to be playing lately. He could be hurt, or has been cut. He doesn't get me too excited and never understood the excitement with him. He can't shoot - 3 for 27 from three for the season. Only played 7 of 18 games for the Polish club.

Yeah, even in past stints with Canada he didn't shoot well. But he seemed to play good D and rebound fairly well for a guard. I am ok with that for a deep bench role.

[frumble]

Some recent updates to rankings and predictions for the classes of 2017-2018:

Even after moving Shai GA to the 2018 draft (projected #11), DraftNet currently predicts 5 Canadians in the first round of the 2019 draft: Barrett (#1), Nickeil AW (#8), Brissett (#11), Simi (#15), and Wigginton (#25). Frankly, I think that's a bit of an over-hype for most (Brissett a lottery pick?), maybe with the exception of Simi. But nice to see them getting some love and attention. Jackson is now projected at the end of the second round, but I think much will be determined by how he comes back from the injury next year.

Rivals rankings for the class of 2018 seem more realistic (to me at least). They have 5 Canadians in their top-150, but they only rank those playing in the US. Barrett (1), Simi (7), and Nembhart (16) are all considered 5 stars, but now they also say Brezdaikas is, which means if he were ranked he would be a top-30 player (maybe higher). Dort is the other player not ranked. They give him 4 stars, but I would give him 5 and rank him as a top-30 talent. The two others are Llewellyn (90), who I would also put higher, and Kirkwood (126).

Altogether, a really good field of potential for these two classes, especially since they don't even mention Akot in these rankings, but I still have much faith that he'll bounce back.

NBADraft.net with new mocks out over the weekend.

Still have SGA 11 in 2018.

Rankings for Canadians in mock 2019 also unchanged:
Barrett 1
NAW 8
Brissett 11
Shi-ttu 15
Wigginton 25
Jackson 55

[mojo13]

Cadougan played his first game of the season in the NBL last night. I'm actually going to see him play in person tomorrow - I'll let everyone know how he looks. I've always been rather unimpressed with his game to be honest - I have to think we can come up with a better option, but he frequently pops up with the SMNT and you'd have to assume he's going to be considered if we have a need for PG depth.

Justin Edwards is in South Korea - he was "purchased" from an Italian top division club mid season after a strong start. He is playing solid in Korea and could be available. I think Cadougan is still hurt, but not sure - he doesnt really move my needle, but could be a decent, boring PG backup if healthy.

I agree with both of you. Cadougan hasn't been impressive or moved the needle since he was about 16.
But who else is there? Assuming no Scrubb, we need a 4th and 5th behind Hanlan, XRM, and Heslip. I really doubt Rautins re-joins the program, or Naz Long makes himself available yet again, so we are looking at two of:
Keane
Cadougan
Edwards
Notice
???

Duance Notice was with a club in the Polish top division. His stats were unimpressive and doesn't seem to be playing lately. He could be hurt, or has been cut. He doesn't get me too excited and never understood the excitement with him. He can't shoot - 3 for 27 from three for the season. Only played 7 of 18 games for the Polish club.

Yeah, even in past stints with Canada he didn't shoot well. But he seemed to play good D and rebound fairly well for a guard. I am ok with that for a deep bench role.

Aaron Best would be my guess as a likely 5th guard. He is right there in front of everyone with the 905, so he should be a known commodity and available. I havn't watched him much but Blake Murphy (who is basically the 905 beat reporter) has made comments that he has been decent for the 905 especially on defense. Best was also on the Nov. Qualifier window extended player pool. Mychel Mulder is there on the Windy City Bulls starting at SG and playing very mediocre.

Keane would likely remain since he has already been on the team and is a PG. Naz Long is a real possibility - why don't you think he would make himself available? We don't really know if he was ever truly cut from the Americup team (we just angrily assumed it, due to our long felt bias that we see Basketball Canada as incompetent). He could just as easily have let them known he couldn't play in the Americup but wanted to show his interest by joining training camp.


Notice, Joel Friessen, Warren Ward, Jermaine Anderson and Adika Peter-McNeilly were the other guards on the Nov. Qualifier window extended player pool. I'd assume those are the more likely candidates, after Best (and maybe Long - but that may just be wishful thinking). Ward is a top 10 scorer, 14.3ppg, (solid efficiency) in the Spanish Second division which is better than many countries first divisions.
http://www.basketball.ca/en/news-article/slug-9cc3j2

[slothrop8]

Cadougan played his first game of the season in the NBL last night. I'm actually going to see him play in person tomorrow - I'll let everyone know how he looks. I've always been rather unimpressed with his game to be honest - I have to think we can come up with a better option, but he frequently pops up with the SMNT and you'd have to assume he's going to be considered if we have a need for PG depth.

Justin Edwards is in South Korea - he was "purchased" from an Italian top division club mid season after a strong start. He is playing solid in Korea and could be available. I think Cadougan is still hurt, but not sure - he doesnt really move my needle, but could be a decent, boring PG backup if healthy.

I agree with both of you. Cadougan hasn't been impressive or moved the needle since he was about 16.
But who else is there? Assuming no Scrubb, we need a 4th and 5th behind Hanlan, XRM, and Heslip. I really doubt Rautins re-joins the program, or Naz Long makes himself available yet again, so we are looking at two of:
Keane
Cadougan
Edwards
Notice
???

Duance Notice was with a club in the Polish top division. His stats were unimpressive and doesn't seem to be playing lately. He could be hurt, or has been cut. He doesn't get me too excited and never understood the excitement with him. He can't shoot - 3 for 27 from three for the season. Only played 7 of 18 games for the Polish club.

Yeah, even in past stints with Canada he didn't shoot well. But he seemed to play good D and rebound fairly well for a guard. I am ok with that for a deep bench role.

Aaron Best would be my guess as a likely 5th guard. He is right there in front of everyone with the 905, so he should be a known commodity and available. I havn't watched him much but Blake Murphy (who is basically the 905 beat reporter) has made comments that he has been decent for the 905 especially on defense. Best was also on the Nov. Qualifier window extended player pool. Mychel Mulder is there on the Windy City Bulls starting at SG and playing very mediocre.

Keane would likely remain since he has already been on the team and is a PG. Naz Long is a real possibility - why don't you think he would make himself available? We don't really know if he was ever truly cut from the Americup team (we just angrily assumed it, due to our long felt bias that we see Basketball Canada as incompetent). He could just as easily have let them known he couldn't play in the Americup but wanted to show his interest by joining training camp.


Notice, Joel Friessen, Warren Ward, Jermaine Anderson and Adika Peter-McNeilly were the other guards on the Nov. Qualifier window extended player pool. I'd assume those are the more likely candidates, after Best (and maybe Long - but that may just be wishful thinking).
http://www.basketball.ca/en/news-article/slug-9cc3j2

I saw Cadougan and Friessen play live this past Friday for London in the NBL. Friessen certainly looked like the better player to me - though judging off a 1 game sample size is obviously a little foolish. Regardless, Cadougan looked like an average backup PG in the NBL - very unremarkable even at that level. Friessen shot the ball well when I saw him and is at 38% on some volume for 3 for the season which might have some value to the SMNT. He also flashed a few more dimensions to his game than Cadougan did - though again it was only 1 game, but as I mentioned earlier - Cadougan has never really impressed me much anyway.

[frumble]

Keane would likely remain since he has already been on the team and is a PG. Naz Long is a real possibility - why don't you think he would make himself available? We don't really know if he was ever truly cut from the Americup team (we just angrily assumed it, due to our long felt bias that we see Basketball Canada as incompetent). He could just as easily have let them known he couldn't play in the Americup but wanted to show his interest by joining training camp.

You are right; I shouldn't be automatically assuming that Long had been passed over, as opposed to pulling himself out of consideration.

[Hair Canada]

Jamal Murray might be on his way to the best game of his career. 28 points on excellent shooting, plus 5 assists and 4 rebounds, and we're only six minutes into the third quarter.

[mojo13]

Jamal Murray might be on his way to the best game of his career. 28 points on excellent shooting, plus 5 assists and 4 rebounds, and we're only six minutes into the third quarter.

Finíshes with 38/5/6. Wow.
And Wiggins with 21 at halftime.

Can’t wait to see all these guys on the floor together(or most, as it will never be all) . Might even get most of them this summer.

Stauskas and Ennis are the only NBA FAs right?

[Hair Canada]

Wiggins versus Jamal Murray is an interesting comparison.
https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.fcgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1_select=Andrew+Wiggins&player_id1=wiggian01&y1=2016&player_id2_hint=Jamal+Murray&player_id2_select=Jamal+Murray&player_id2=murraja01&idx=players&y2=2018

I agree this is an interesting comparison, especially given their excellent shape as of late. Also interesting because although Jamal is often considered a PG and Wiggins an SF, they both seem to be most comfortable at SG.

The comparison you bring is certainly interesting, as they seem to indeed be very similar in their second year, with Wigging having an edge in terms of overall scoring (although Jamal is making consistent progress this year and we're only halfway through). Still, the real difference that sticks out to me is the shooting percentage from 3 (37 for Jamal vs. 30 for Andrew) and from the line (Jamal with more than 90%). Jamal is just a much better shooter, and therefore a more efficient player. He's still quite inconsistent, but so is Wiggins, now in his fourth year.

Maybe even more importantly, Wiggins did not improve in almost anything except for his defense (and maybe slightly 3-point shooting) over the last two years. It seems very likely that Jamal will continue to advance -- in scoring, but also playmaking. In fact, I'd be quite surprised and disappointed if that didn't happen. As for Wiggins suddenly making a jump in something like playmaking, DeRozan shows us that it's certainly possible and it's also true that they are very similar players in many ways. But I also think that DeRozan might be the exception rather than the rule and most players no longer make great strides after 4 or 5 years in the league (in fact, quite a few go south).

All that said, I do agree that it would be great to have both of them playing for team Canada.

[Hair Canada]

Another name from the class of 2018 that I haven't mentioned before but I've been quite excited about lately:

Dalano Banton. Banton is a 6'7 or maybe even 6'8 combo guard. I watched him a bit last year and wasn't blown away, but the watched some games lately and he's made a huge jump. He plays for an okay US school, Redemption Christian Academy. Actually, I'm not sure what's the advantage in going to the US if you're not going to a top program like Montverde or Oak Hill. For me, the top Canadian prep schools like Athlete Institute/Orangeville or TRC Academy are just as good if not better and the competition is also at least comparable. But that's another discussion.

Anyway, Banton is showing remarkable scoring and playmaking abilities this year. In the few games I've watched, he finished all with 30+ scoring in a variety of ways, including a nice 3-point stroke (good form, elevation, and range), floaters, mid-range stop-and-pop, and finishing at the rim with both hands. Also a good free throw shooter and gets to the line regularly. From what I could gather, this was no fluke either. He's been very consistent in the scoring department. And at 6'7 he's playing PG for his team most of the game and definitely creating nicely for others, although he's clearly the best scorer and player on the team. He recently faced GTA Prep with the highly touted AJ Lawson (#1 in the 2019 class according to NPH), and completely dominated the matchup.

Okay, at this point you might be thinking: "what's the catch?" Well, Banton is not an elite athlete. He's not that quick or explosive. His handle, although very good for his height, is also not elite and he sometimes has difficulty in a crowd and loses the ball. His physical profile and some of his skills actually remind me quite a bit of SGA. Like the latter, he won't overwhelm you with speed or explosiveness, but both players are very shifty and deceptive, change speeds, and able to get to the basket despite their lack of explosive first step. Shai is certainly a better defender at this point, but Banton is already a better offensive player and scorer than Shai was last year (in particular, he has a much better shooting touch and shooting form), and he is likely to get even better, as he is two years younger than SGA. Until lately, he was in the 2019 graduating class, but recently reclassified to 2018 and will play for Western Kentucky next year.

Banton is kind of an unknown still in the youth basketball circles, but I think that's going to change in the coming year. For me, he's just one step behind the big names (Barrett, Dort, Nembhard, Simi, Brezdaikis) and on par with Jalin Llewellyn that I mentioned before (both more impressive, I think, than someone like Noah Kirkwood). Always hard to know how things are going to turn out, but I do think that's another one with NBA potential from this class. Hopefully, he'll also suit up for the U18 this summer, so he can get some international experience and commitment to the program.

[mojo13]

Another name from the class of 2018 that I haven't mentioned before but I've been quite excited about lately:

Dalano Banton. Banton is a 6'7 or maybe even 6'8 combo guard. I watched him a bit last year and wasn't blown away, but the watched some games lately and he's made a huge jump. He plays for an okay US school, Redemption Christian Academy. Actually, I'm not sure what's the advantage in going to the US if you're not going to a top program like Montverde or Oak Hill. For me, the top Canadian prep schools like Athlete Institute/Orangeville or TRC Academy are just as good if not better and the competition is also at least comparable. But that's another discussion.

Anyway, Banton is showing remarkable scoring and playmaking abilities this year. In the few games I've watched, he finished all with 30+ scoring in a variety of ways, including a nice 3-point stroke (good form, elevation, and range), floaters, mid-range stop-and-pop, and finishing at the rim with both hands. Also a good free throw shooter and gets to the line regularly. From what I could gather, this was no fluke either. He's been very consistent in the scoring department. And at 6'7 he's playing PG for his team most of the game and definitely creating nicely for others, although he's clearly the best scorer and player on the team. He recently faced GTA Prep with the highly touted AJ Lawson (#1 in the 2019 class according to NPH), and completely dominated the matchup.

Okay, at this point you might be thinking: "what's the catch?" Well, Banton is not an elite athlete. He's not that quick or explosive. His handle, although very good for his height, is also not elite and he sometimes has difficulty in a crowd and loses the ball. His physical profile and some of his skills actually remind me quite a bit of SGA. Like the latter, he won't overwhelm you with speed or explosiveness, but both players are very shifty and deceptive, change speeds, and able to get to the basket despite their lack of explosive first step. Shai is certainly a better defender at this point, but Banton is already a better offensive player and scorer than Shai was last year (in particular, he has a much better shooting touch and shooting form), and he is likely to get even better, as he is two years younger than SGA. Until lately, he was in the 2019 graduating class, but recently reclassified to 2018 and will play for Western Kentucky next year.

Banton is kind of an unknown still in the youth basketball circles, but I think that's going to change in the coming year. For me, he's just one step behind the big names (Barrett, Dort, Nembhard, Simi, Brezdaikis) and on par with Jalin Llewellyn that I mentioned before (both more impressive, I think, than someone like Noah Kirkwood). Always hard to know how things are going to turn out, but I do think that's another one with NBA potential from this class. Hopefully, he'll also suit up for the U18 this summer, so he can get some international experience and commitment to the program.

Thanks - I didnt know about him. Just to add to HairCanada:
Danalo received offers from Kansas State, UMass and Minnesota, opting to sign with Western Kentucky. Who surprisingly put together the #14 recruiting class last year and is working on another good one this year.
He has a 24/7 National Composite Ranking of 310 and three or four star depending on site. Seems from what Hair said, that would likely increase. Banton was originally a 2019 recruiting but is going to reclassify. He was previously in the top 100 players of the 2019 class, according to 247 Sports and Rivals. Also listed as 6'5 by 24/7 (6'6 by NPH)....so maybe he is growing too. NPH currently has him at #10 in their 2018 rankings.


Hair - did you know much about Brandon Clarke? Ex-San Jose St, who transferred to Gonzaga and sitting out this year. A year in the "Olynyk Clinic" did wonders for Wiltjer, so it will be interesting what it can do for an already pretty darn good player (All-Mountain West First Team and All-Defensive Team choice as a sophomore) . I swear hardly anyone realizes he is Canadian - as he was born in BC but raised in Arizona. No so much as a peep about him as a high level Canadian prospect. He is clearly NBA caliber athlete and if (big if) he can learn some range on his shot this off year, he could surprise people as a legit NBA prospect.

[Hair Canada]

No, haven't really heard of Clarke before and never saw him play. Seems like a good prospect, although not very big and doesn't seem like he has the shot to mix it outside of the paint, which might really limit long-term potential. His block stats seem impressive though, so seems like he might have good potential on the defensive end. Have you seen him play? What do you think about him?

And yes, Gonzaga is one of the best places to develop talents. It's not just Olynyk and Wiltjer, they seem to be specializing in international players in recent years. This year they have French Killian Tillie and Japanese Rui Hachimura, who both seem like possible future NBA players (I especially liked what I saw from Hachimura in the last U19 world championship. First legit Japanese player I've ever seen).

[mojo13]

No, haven't really heard of Clarke before and never saw him play. Seems like a good prospect, although not very big and doesn't seem like he has the shot to mix it outside of the paint, which might really limit long-term potential. His block stats seem impressive though, so seems like he might have good potential on the defensive end. Have you seen him play? What do you think about him?

And yes, Gonzaga is one of the best places to develop talents. It's not just Olynyk and Wiltjer, they seem to be specializing in international players in recent years. This year they have French Killian Tillie and Japanese Rui Hachimura, who both seem like possible future NBA players (I especially liked what I saw from Hachimura in the last U19 world championship. First legit Japanese player I've ever seen).

I watched one game of his last year and was a little smitten by him athletically. I do keep forgetting how small he is at 6'8/210. He is super athletic, mobile and has huge hops but although he was awesome inside and running the floor at SJ State he is very likely too small to be inside player in the NBA. And he has no outside shot whatsoever.
He put up 17.5 ppg (.589), 9 rbds, 2.6 blocks, 2.3 assist, 1.1 steals a game last season in the MW. With a mere 1 three pointer on the season. Bad FT shooter too at 57%. Kinda seems like an worse shooting Larry Nance Jr to me. He should be bulking up and working at on a outside shot this year off....it will be interesting to see and someone to keep an eye on next year. I'm a Zag's homer though so I could be unrealistically excited for this one.




Also Dillon Brooks and Jamal Murray named to the Rising Stars World Team.

[mojo13]

Last week in Canadian pro news:
http://www.usbasket.com/Canada/news/520370/Andrew-Wiggins'-40-points-make-him-top-Canadian-player-abroad-of-the-week

Dyshawn Pierre still playing very well. Moved into the starting line up a few weeks ago, producing allot more on offense. His club extended him for next year already.
Nichoslon still playing quite well in China.
Wiltjer coming around on offense for Olympiacos - still hearing his D is awful. He is likely Olympiacos' best shooter, so there will be a role for him the rest of the season.
Ejim still a little so-so. More of a role player not seeing much improvement over the season. Thomas Scrubb seems to be picking up he play a bit though.
Phil Scrubb still hurt and not playing.
Dylan Ennis settling back down a little now that he is playing at a much higher competition level.
Doornekamp still starting and producing modest offense for Valencia in a 3&D role.


I am noticing many European countries including their EuroLeague players in their WC Qualification team initial player pools. I still don't think we see most EL clubs releasing guys but a few did in November. So maybe there is something to this seemingly wishful thinking. I don't think we get anyone for Feb though considering the added layer of travel and logistics.

[Hair Canada]

Some recent footage from Jaelin Llewellyn (one game highlights):

Read on Twitter

I've said it before and will say it again: He really reminds me of Wigginton in terms of size, athleticism, style of play, and scoring abilities. But he also has better decision-making and playmaking abilities when compared to Wigginton, so I really like the potential. If Wigginton can get to the NBA, so can Llewellyn (I do realize though that these things depend a lot on intangibles and how well you actually perform at the college level rather than just how high your potential is).

In any case, what a class this 2018 is shaping up to be. You gotta really love the potential.

[SharoneWright]

Some recent footage from Jaelin Llewellyn (one game highlights):

Read on Twitter

I've said it before and will say it again: He really reminds me of Wigginton in terms of size, athleticism, style of play, and scoring abilities. But he also has better decision-making and playmaking abilities when compared to Wigginton, so I really like the potential. If Wigginton can get to the NBA, so can Llewellyn (I do realize though that these things depend a lot on intangibles and how well you actually perform at the college level rather than just how high your potential is).

In any case, what a class this 2018 is shaping up to be. You gotta really love the potential.

Hair Canada, are you Jaelin?

[Hair Canada]

Hair Canada, are you Jaelin?

Ha! I wish... I'm afraid my own hair is already receding to the point of no return. But maybe Jaelin will be the new bearer of this title? I believe it is now held by Kelly Olynyk, who of course inherited it from the Canadian GOAT. Not at all a bad pedigree...

[TheFutureMM]

DraftExpress 2018 mock-draft is out with what looks like team needs taken into account... Shai at 19 to NOP. Write-up below.

"With Rajon Rondo in the last year of his deal and no clear successor behind him, it would make sense for the Pelicans to think about drafting a versatile point guard who can operate in different lineups without dominating the ball for a team whose usage is largely sucked up by DeMarcus Cousins, Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday.

Gilgeous-Alexander has the size, length, multipositional defensive versatility and unselfishness needed to operate as a role player alongside stars."

[Hair Canada]

Another good game for Pangos yesterday against Panathinaikos in Greece. 14 points (50% from 2, 60% from 3) and 8 assists. The game went to overtime, where Pangos scored what seemed like the winning shot with 4 seconds left. But then Nick Calathes managed to run the entire court in these 4 seconds and score a buzzer-beater.

For the season (20 games), Pangos is taking 5 3-point shots a game, converting on almost half of these attempts and is third in the Euroleague in Assists. Hope he can suit up for team Canada this summer.