Team Canada Basketball Thread V2.0

[mojo13]

I didn’t watch any games just reporting his All Tournament Selection and high PER (small sample). So thanks for the deeper look.



Some Team Canada news as well:

Read on Twitter

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That will be an ok warm up game - at least they are somewhat decent. Rather we play another decent Euro team in there. A different style to help us better prep for Lithuania rather than a very different Nigerian play style.

[BilboBanginz]

ESPN has posted their updated 2020 Mock. It's paywalled but someone posted it on Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/NBA_Draft/comments/bg1fxi/espn_insider_request_updated_2020_nba_mock_draft/

Only one Canadian; AJ Lawson @ 26.

[mojo13]

Kadre Gray declares for the draft as well.

Read on Twitter

Back to back USports player of the year. No chance right?

Any thoughts?

[azorian]

ESPN has posted their updated 2020 Mock. It's paywalled but someone posted it on Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/NBA_Draft/comments/bg1fxi/espn_insider_request_updated_2020_nba_mock_draft/

Only one Canadian; AJ Lawson @ 26.

On top of that he's already declared for the 2019 draft

Sent from my FRD-L14 using Tapatalk

[Mattd97]

at this rate im expecting to see a tweet that announces that Ive just declared for the draft

[CharlieTO]

Marial Shayok has a good PIT Invitational run.
Made the all tournament team and led all players in PER.

He’s 24 but could still has a legit shot of being drafted in the 2nd or picking up a Two way contract. Far from a sure thing, but I’d half to guess a 50/50 shot.

I would think Shayok is exactly the kind of guy some teams would target in the 2nd round. There's a pretty good track record of solid, upperclassmen wing players like that finding a role in the NBA - Spencer Dinwiddie, Khris Middleton, Pat Connaughton, James Ennis, and Wes Iwundu are all examples of players like that getting solid minutes in the post-season right now.

I think he can make an immediate impact/contribution for a team

[mojo13]

Igor Kokoskov who was an earlier name thrown around in Team Canada’s coaching search was fired by the Suns last night. Never could tell how searious a rumor that was though. I’m still hoping for Ray Rana but perhaps this is part of the reason for the delay in naming a coach.

[frumble]

I would think Shayok is exactly the kind of guy some teams would target in the 2nd round. There's a pretty good track record of solid, upperclassmen wing players like that finding a role in the NBA - Spencer Dinwiddie, Khris Middleton, Pat Connaughton, James Ennis, and Wes Iwundu are all examples of players like that getting solid minutes in the post-season right now.

Good comparisons, and I hope you are right.

But I fear that his age will be perceived as a fairly significant factor.

Middleton was a couple months shy of his 21st b-day when he was drafted, and Dinwiddie was just past his 21st.
I think the expected upside is higher with guys around 21 than 24 (Shayok will be 24 in July).

Even Connaughton, Iwundu, and Ennis were around 22.5 to 22.9 at the time of being drafted.
Probably past the point of being viewed as having a lot of untapped potential, but still a year to a year and a half younger than Shayok.

[Hair Canada]

I would think Shayok is exactly the kind of guy some teams would target in the 2nd round. There's a pretty good track record of solid, upperclassmen wing players like that finding a role in the NBA - Spencer Dinwiddie, Khris Middleton, Pat Connaughton, James Ennis, and Wes Iwundu are all examples of players like that getting solid minutes in the post-season right now.

Good comparisons, and I hope you are right.

But I fear that his age will be perceived as a fairly significant factor.

Middleton was a couple months shy of his 21st b-day when he was drafted, and Dinwiddie was just past his 21st.
I think the expected upside is higher with guys around 21 than 24 (Shayok will be 24 in July).

Even Connaughton, Iwundu, and Ennis were around 22.5 to 22.9 at the time of being drafted.
Probably past the point of being viewed as having a lot of untapped potential, but still a year to a year and a half younger than Shayok.

Agreed. I still hope he makes it to the league, but if not, and given his age, he should consider starting his career overseas to start seeing some money. I can see him as a good scoring option on a good European team.

[aminiaturebuddha]

I really hope that Birch will be available for the team this summer. He just provides a defensive presence that no one else we have really does. Even though the Magic were blown out by the Raptors, Birch had impressive moments on that end in every game.

There are very few plus defenders amongst the top Canadian players, with the exception of Thompson, Joseph, and a young SGA. Having Birch to make life difficult for opposing teams in the paint could make the difference in some close games.

[Hair Canada]

I've been watching Birch carefully throughout the series against the Raptors. Really liked what I saw. He's a really good defender. Blocks shots and guards the big men well, but also quick enough to switch on guards and contain them. I thought he was Orlando's best defender in the series and am excited for what he can bring for team Canada on that side of the court.


On offense, his usage is really low. He sets good screens and tries to roll, but hardly ever gets the ball. When he does, he has fairly good hands and touch around the basket. But I think part of not having a bigger roll on offense is on him. More than once he got the ball in the mid-range area or after an offensive rebound (he's fairly good at that as well) and didn't even look at the basket, instead just looking to pass the ball out. That's too bad, because I think with more confidence and assertiveness, he could be more of a force on that end of the floor and get extended minutes.

Overall, it should be said -- Birch was much more valuable for Orlando in these playoffs than Vucevic (who had a terrible series) when considering both sides of the floor. It shows clearly in their + - numbers: Vuceivic -66 (in 146 minutes). Birch -4 (in 93 minutes).

Right now, Birch seems like a much better option for team Canada than TT. Would have him come from the bench behind Powell and maybe even start against the likes of Gobert, Bogut, and Valanciunas.

[frumble]

Right now, Birch seems like a much better option for team Canada than TT. Would have him come from the bench behind Powell and maybe even start against the likes of Gobert, Bogut, and Valanciunas.

I agree. Assuming all three are available, I think the primary big minutes should go to Olynyk, Powell, and Birch, with the allocation among them depending on game situation and matchups.

[mojo13]

Great to see you guys on the same page with Birch - sometimes I doubt my eyes and worry that I just blindly love my sons and Birch has been one for years. I've felt he has been one of the most underrated Canadians for a number of years now as he was just not getting the consistent chance to prove himself. Every time he has received meaningful minutes for the Magic over the last two years he has made a real difference. But he was always pushed back to a 3rd stringer when the Magic were fully healthy. Most of his contribution is not reflective in the box-score - you really need to watch him play to see as he is so good at many of the little things that contribute to winning bball. The good news is he had a fantastic run since mid January and really proved he is at minimum a very good back-up center and a potential starter on more than a few teams. It will be interesting to see what the Magic do with him, Vuc and Bamba. Many Magic fans are calling to let Vuc walk and let Birch start until Bamba is ready. Birch is a RFA - so it will be interesting to see if another team chases him - but I am really hoping he doesn't end up back with the Magic unless they get rid of Vuc or Bamba.

I remember really getting on the Birch train during the run-up to the 2016 Olympic Qualifiers - he was fantastic in the warm-up tour across Europe. You may recall Tristan Thompson didn't show up until the games started in Manila (missing 2-3 weeks of training and warm-up games) and Triano just handed him the starter role and big minutes, relegating Birch to a minor role. I was extremely disappointed at the time and really thought Birch was better than Thompson then and there (or at least deserved way more minutes than he received). I was probably overly excited and too far over my skis then - but it great to see consensus starting to build that Birch is better than Thompson. I am even starting to see a few media members make these comments as well. Fingers crossed that the coaching staff sees this - because it is going to be hard for Birch to unseat Thompson's role and minutes if we have legacy coaching that favors veteran experience and commitment. One of the reasons a new coach without ties to the team could be a good thing as you'd think they would not have that legacy bias that would favor TT over Birch or maybe CoJo over SGA.
This could be a real problem to consider - it was publicly expressed that Birch was disappointed in his role last summer when the NBA players played (as he should have been). He was again relegated to a minor role with TT getting heavy minutes. At least TT played decently last summer and within his means (unlike Manila). Luckily Birch has continued to publicly express interest in playing for Canada. He even went so far as to say he will be in China with the team whether he is playing or not.

[aminiaturebuddha]

The minutes allocation will have to come down to the opponent this summer, but as Hair pointed out, the countries that Canada is slated to play have big men that would likely point to Birch playing a much larger role.

The good thing is that for roster construction they shouldn't have to choose. Assuming they all play, I would expect that the top 5 bigs will be Olynyk, Powell, Birch, Thompson, and Ejim (if they keep using him exclusively as a PF). That's actually a pretty diverse set of players, and they all have different strengths - Olynyk with his shooting, scoring and playmaking, Powell with his pick and roll offence, Birch with his excellent paint defence, Thompson with his rebounding and switching defence, and Ejim with his energy and all-around play. They should be quite complementary as long as they all buy into their roles.

[TrueNorth31]

More on the potential Pre World Cup Nigerian games - one in Winnipeg - another ?

Read on Twitter

[TrueNorth31]

Hamilton gets second Nigerian game - hopefully they can sell it as a SGA homecoming.

Read on Twitter

[TrueNorth31]

More details on the Winnipeg game.

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/canada-nigeria-playing-basketball-world-cup-warmup-game-in-winnipeg-509131582.html

Seems like they will open camp August 1-2 - expecting a commitment until Sept 15.

[mojo13]

Anyone have any idea what kind of team Nigeria may have. I haven’t really followed the African teams too closely.

I believe there are four current NBA players. Al-Farouq Aminu, Chimezie Metu, Ekpe Udoh and Josh Okogie. Not sure if all or any have played for Nigeria.
Oliadipo is of Nigerian decent as well...but don’t think he has ever played for them.

Bunch of solid Euro pros after that.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria_national_basketball_team

Looks like they can put together a team of pretty solid bigs, but struggle with quality talents at the guards.

[bozothepope]

Anybody know anything about 6’5'' 2020 PG Karim Mane from Montreal? Apparently he's racking up offers (Kansas, Oregon, Arizona State, Texas A&M, Maryland to name a few) and he has a 7-foot wingspan.

Edit: I just did some research and apparently he moved to Canada from Senegal when he was 7, but he's likely a Canadian citizen, no?

[mojo13]

NBA Draft Combine invites are starting to trickle out yesterday. I have not seen an official list but unconfirmed sources on Twitter are saying the following have invites:
RJ
NAW
Clarke
Dort
Shittu
Iggy

No word on any others yet - I don't really expect any other invites besides Kabengele. But maybe Wigginton, Nembhard or Lawson can slip in.




I'll leave it to others to comment on Karim Mane (never heard of him - but dont really follow highschool) I get all my news from Hair Canada and the rest of you. But yeah you'd hope is a Canadian citizen by now. I think the key is before 16 to be eligible for FIBA and not be considered naturalized. Not that we are using that one slot anyways. He is indeed blowing up on the interwebs right now and hype along has me interested.