The Canadian Report – Your Monthly Destination for Canadian Basketball News

by NBA News

By. Haily Salvian

There are 13 Canadians on NBA rosters in 2017-2018, which means on any given night the nation could be represented in multiple games across the league.

Some Canucks are in solid starting roles – Jamal Murray, Andrew Wiggins, Dillon Brooks and Kelly Olynyk – while others are making their mark in reserve roles.

It’s too soon to say who will be the best Canadian this year, but we can certainly look at who is turning heads midway through the season.

Top Four

Andrew Wiggins

Despite his move to the No.3 man on the Timberwolves, behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Jimmy Butler, Wiggins still stands tall as Canada’s best.

In his return to Canadian soil, Wiggins and the T-Wolves bested the Raptors 115-109 behind a team-high 29 points from the Vaughan, Ont., native.

Wiggins is averaging 18.2 points, 1.8 assists, and 4.2 rebounds in just over 36 minutes per game this season.

He also had a season-high 40 points against the LA Clippers, shooting 57 per cent from the field this month.

He is shooting under 50% from the field, which is less than ideal for the former No. 1 pick, but at 22, his game continues to evolve.

Jamal Murray

Murray has consistently been featured in the Canadian Report for his performance each month and his attention-grabbing stat lines.

So far in 2017-2018, the 21-year-old has almost doubled his average points-per-game with 16.3, up from 9.9 points in his rookie season.

Murray is also adding 2.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and shooting 92 per cent from the charity stripe.

Kelly Olynyk

Olynyk remains one of the premier Canadians playing in the NBA.

As a free agent, the 26-year-old signed a $50-million contract with the Miami Heat in the offseason.

The seven-foot centre spent his first four seasons with the Boston Celtics and mostly came off the bench. With the Heat, he has started 19 of 49 games and is averaging a little over 23 minutes.

This season he is averaging a career-high 10.9 points per game while adding 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists.

Dillon Brooks

Brooks is turning heads in the NBA in his rookie season. The 22-year-old was drafted 45th overall, and wasn’t expected to make as immediate of an impact as he has.

Brooks is the only Grizzlies player to play in all 48 games this season, a lone bright spot on an injured-ridden squad.

The rookie starter is averaging 8.6 points-per-game this season and adding three rebounds and 1.2 assists.

Notables

Cory Joseph

After being dealt from the Raptors last summer, Joseph is finding his place with the new-look Indiana Pacers.

A fan favourite during his time in Toronto, the NBA veteran is averaging 7.9 points per game, 2.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists.

Trey Lyles

Many questioned the Denver Nuggets move to acquire Lyles from the Utah Jazz in the offseason, but the questions have since faded as the former Kentucky Wildcats standout makes his mark in arenas around the NBA.

The 22-year-old is averaging 10.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game this season.

Career Highs

The NBA opened the curtain on 2018 in a big way for basketball fans north of the border.

Canada’s team, the Toronto Raptors, kicked off the new year with a 131-127 overtime win over the Milwaukee Bucks on January 1.

Their win was backed by a career and franchise-high points performance from DeMar DeRozan who poured in 52 points, including five three-pointers.

DeRozan surpassed the previous franchise high of 51 points set by Vince Carter (February 27, 2000) and Terrance Ross (January 25, 2015).

January saw multiple career-highs bested.

On Jan. 22, Kitchener, Ont., native Jamal Murray had a career night against the Portland Trail Blazers, dropping 38 points in the Denver Nuggets’ 104-101 win.

Dillon Brooks from Mississauga, Ont., also posted a career high, with 22 points in the Memphis Grizzlies 106-88 win over the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 19.

And this may not be a career-high, but native Montrealer Khem Birch had his first career double-double in a Canadian match-up versus Andrew Wiggins and the Timberwolves. Birch contributed 12 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in 19 minutes. The Orlando Magic won 108-102.

All-Star Weekend

In three weeks, the NBA’s best will hit the court in the league’s All-Star Game in Los Angeles.

No Canadians were chosen in the mock draft that saw LeBron James and Steph Curry make their rosters based on players voted in, but the north will still be represented by a handful of Raptors.

DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry were both voted into the All-Star game and will suit up on Curry’s all-star team.

On the other side of the bench, Raptors’ head coach Dwane Casey was chosen as an all-star coach, and will coach against his pair of all-stars as Team LeBron’s coach.

Casey is the first coach named to the All-Star Game in Raptors’ history.

Two Canadians will be featured in the Rising Stars challenge, a game that features first and second-year players.

Jamal Murray and Dillon Brooks were both named to the nine-man “World” team that will take on the U.S. team on the Friday of All-Star Weekend.

While Brooks makes his rookie debut, Murray will look to repeat as the game’s most valuable player of the game.

Making his debut

Ten months after suffering a season-ending ACL injury, Chris Boucher made his NBA G-League debut with the Santa Cruz Warriors, the Golden State Warriors affiliate, on Jan. 18.

Boucher, a former Oregon Ducks forward, was not selected in last year’s NBA draft, but signed a two-way contract with the Warriors to spend time with both the NBA and G-League clubs.

Boucher, who was born in Saint Lucia but was raised in Montreal, came off the bench and scored 11 points on 4-of-6 from the floor in 15 minutes of playing time. He also added three blocks and a pair of rebounds.

Welcome to Toronto

The Raptors and Toronto rap star Drake announced plans to grow their partnership with new program called Welcome to Toronto.

Raptors president Masai Ujiri and Drake – the team’s global ambassador since 2013 – announced the program this month.

Under the program, Drake and the Raptors will donate $1-million to refurbish local community basketball courts and another $2-million to Canada Basketball.

“Over the past four years, the Raptors’ relationship with Drake has always ultimately been about celebrating this city and the people that make it unique,” said Ujiri in a press release. “We have something very special happening in Toronto and Drake is a big part of that.”

The team will host six Welcome to Toronto-themed games this season, including the Raptors’ 123-111 victory over the LA Lakers on Jan. 28.

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