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octothorp · 07-23-2013, 01:37 PM

I just wanted to do a mid-summer round-up, because there's been a lot going on that sort of flies under the radar. The senior men's team training camp roster should be coming out in the next week or two, but at other levels there's a number of noteworthy things, some of which is already discussed in this thread.

At the NBA level, Bennett had a great summer, being drafted first overall. Olynyk had a great summer, 13th overall plus a great summer-league. Cory Joseph got some playoff and finals experience, and then a great summer-league. Kris Joseph got traded back to Boston, where he'll probably get a chance to play this time with a rebuilding (or tanking) team. Sacre got some playoff experience and a new contract. At the other end of the spectrum, Kabongo had about the worst summer imaginable, going undrafted and then disappointing even the low expectations for him in summer league. Andy Rautins didn't make much of an impact with Chicago's summer league team, which is disappointing given his record-setting season in the d-league last year.

Going into next year, there will be at least 10 Canadians in the NBA (Bennett, Olynyk, Joseph, Joseph, Sacre, Thompson, Nicholson, Anthony, Dalembert, Nash -- these last two unlikely to play for the national team again), which is up from just 2 a few years ago.

The men's team competed recently in the international university games, and went through their warm-up tournament and the first four games undefeated, before losing to host Russia in the semi-finals. This team had a mix of CIS and NCAA returning players, such as Heslip, Pangos, Powell, and Scrubb. I see this as largely a try-out for the senior national team, and Heslip and Powell in particular had great tournaments although Heslip struggled in Canada's last two games that they lost. You need at least one great shooter in an international tournament, and Canada will need to pick at least one of Heslip, Rautins, and Stauskas. Melvin Ejim probably played well-enough to be in the mix at the SF spot, primarily because it is such a weak spot for the national team right now.
At the high-school level, Montaque Gill-Ceasar and Chris Egi got MVP nods at the Nike Global Challenge, though the Canadian team finished just 2-2. The cadet team finished third in the FIBA Americas tournament losing just one game, in overtime to host Argentina, with Gill-Ceasar, Egi, plus Justin Jackson and Jamal Murray all performing well.
The Junior National Team finished sixth at the worlds, even without Wiggins; Ennis and Lyles were the notable players there.

We'll have a better idea in the next week or two, but right now, I'd expect the FIBA Americas team this year to be something like:
Olynyk, Sacre, Anthony
Thompson, Nicholson, Powell
K. Joseph, Ejim
Heslip, Rautins
C. Joseph, Pangos, Kabongo

Stauskas, Wiltjer, Hanlan, and Scrubb are other guys I could see being in the mix. I don't think Bennett will play this year given his current injury, but as I said previously, everything he says shows his pride in the national program, and if he was healthy I would fully expect him to play. A couple international guys, like Doornekamp, Brown, English or Shepherd may also be in the mix for their international experience, although I think committing fully to the younger generation is the right strategy.

It's worth noting that while Wiggins did turn down the junior team this summer, there's still a chance of him accepting an invite to the senior team, especially since Canada's so shallow at SF, and he'd actually be counted on to play and produce. I'd call that a longshot, but still a possibility.

07-23-2013, 01:37 PM	#65
octothorp Franchise Player Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: not lurking Exp:	I just wanted to do a mid-summer round-up, because there's been a lot going on that sort of flies under the radar. The senior men's team training camp roster should be coming out in the next week or two, but at other levels there's a number of noteworthy things, some of which is already discussed in this thread. At the NBA level, Bennett had a great summer, being drafted first overall. Olynyk had a great summer, 13th overall plus a great summer-league. Cory Joseph got some playoff and finals experience, and then a great summer-league. Kris Joseph got traded back to Boston, where he'll probably get a chance to play this time with a rebuilding (or tanking) team. Sacre got some playoff experience and a new contract. At the other end of the spectrum, Kabongo had about the worst summer imaginable, going undrafted and then disappointing even the low expectations for him in summer league. Andy Rautins didn't make much of an impact with Chicago's summer league team, which is disappointing given his record-setting season in the d-league last year. Going into next year, there will be at least 10 Canadians in the NBA (Bennett, Olynyk, Joseph, Joseph, Sacre, Thompson, Nicholson, Anthony, Dalembert, Nash -- these last two unlikely to play for the national team again), which is up from just 2 a few years ago. The men's team competed recently in the international university games, and went through their warm-up tournament and the first four games undefeated, before losing to host Russia in the semi-finals. This team had a mix of CIS and NCAA returning players, such as Heslip, Pangos, Powell, and Scrubb. I see this as largely a try-out for the senior national team, and Heslip and Powell in particular had great tournaments although Heslip struggled in Canada's last two games that they lost. You need at least one great shooter in an international tournament, and Canada will need to pick at least one of Heslip, Rautins, and Stauskas. Melvin Ejim probably played well-enough to be in the mix at the SF spot, primarily because it is such a weak spot for the national team right now. At the high-school level, Montaque Gill-Ceasar and Chris Egi got MVP nods at the Nike Global Challenge, though the Canadian team finished just 2-2. The cadet team finished third in the FIBA Americas tournament losing just one game, in overtime to host Argentina, with Gill-Ceasar, Egi, plus Justin Jackson and Jamal Murray all performing well. The Junior National Team finished sixth at the worlds, even without Wiggins; Ennis and Lyles were the notable players there. We'll have a better idea in the next week or two, but right now, I'd expect the FIBA Americas team this year to be something like: Olynyk, Sacre, Anthony Thompson, Nicholson, Powell K. Joseph, Ejim Heslip, Rautins C. Joseph, Pangos, Kabongo Stauskas, Wiltjer, Hanlan, and Scrubb are other guys I could see being in the mix. I don't think Bennett will play this year given his current injury, but as I said previously, everything he says shows his pride in the national program, and if he was healthy I would fully expect him to play. A couple international guys, like Doornekamp, Brown, English or Shepherd may also be in the mix for their international experience, although I think committing fully to the younger generation is the right strategy. It's worth noting that while Wiggins did turn down the junior team this summer, there's still a chance of him accepting an invite to the senior team, especially since Canada's so shallow at SF, and he'd actually be counted on to play and produce. I'd call that a longshot, but still a possibility.