Was able to watch the USA vs Canada game on Sunday. Here goes some notes and thoughts on the notables.
McCullough-In the 1st half he dealt with some foul trouble and started out a little slow, but The Hammer did nail up a nice facial that he threw down on a 7 footer at the 25 minute mark
. Was interesting indeed to see him play up top in the zone and kind of awkward as well lol. There was this one sequence where the Canadian team was passing the ball around because nobody was going to shoot over a player with a 7'3 wingspan up top, so when one of the guards had the ball McCullough motioned his hands for a pass like he was a teammate at the 9:33 mark:rolling:. The 2nd half he got things going in a big way specifically in the 3rd qtr, where he scored 10pts and had the most exciting plays of the game. First he started by breaking his man off the dribble out on the perimeter in isolation forcing a foul call and getting to the line. Did what he is most noted for and that's running the floor like a track star and finishing off a few lovely lobs. There was a few plays when he would just out jump everybody and get one hand on rebunds showcasing that freakish athleticism. As I noted in another thread, he needs to get stronger to bang in the paint. He was moved out of the way too easily inside when getting boxed out for boards. Another thing that I will point out after watching him a bunch this year is that he has a very nonchalant attitude on the court. Whether he makes a good play or bad, he hardly if ever shows any emotion. To me as long as he's doing his job then I don't usually care for that, but knowing how a lot of people got on Triche for being a dull personality on the court, then The Hammer makes Triche look like Marshall Henderson in comparison.
Briscoe-I kept reading this summer how he had lost some weight and was much quicker than before, and while he's not Usain Bolt with the rock those reports turned out to be true. Spent most of the 1st half as a facilitator setting up teammates for scores before turning up the pace for himself in the scoring department in the 2nd half. Had numerous successful possessions where he easily broke his man off the bounce and got into the lane which either led to a score or an assist. 2016 Canadian stud Jamal Murray, was a victim of Briscoe's dribble penetration moves on several occasions with Briscoe getting by him with ease and scoring on him a few times.
Chris Egi-2015 C from Canada, who will be transferring to Montverde this season was really a treat to watch. Plays with a high motor and is full of energy. Runs the floor well, finished most of his opportunities inside, blocked/altered shots, and rebounded his area well. High academic kid also with several Ivy's, Northwestern, and Stanford recruiting him. Would love to see SU eventually get involve especially with the talk of him possibly reclassifying to 2014.
Montaque Gill-Caesar-2015 SF from Canada. Did most of his damage in the mid-range area, which looks to be his bread butter. Pretty ironic because last year a scout from Canada who has seen him several times before told me Gilly-Caesar was like Kris-Jo with more upside. He was ok for the most part but didn't really jump out to me in this game.
Dillon Brooks-2015 SF from Canada, transferring to Findlay Prep this season. May not have the physical upside as Gill-Caesar but had the better game of the two in this one imho. Has good size, scored repeatedly on drives inside, and always seemed to be around the ball.
Jamal Murray-2016 SG from Canada. Second time that I have seen him this summer and he's basically a scoring guard. Can create his own shot and shoot from distance. More comfortable creating offense for himself than others at this point, but as he gets older I would expect him to become a better passer and creator for others as well.
Phil Booth- 2014 SG currently a Nova lean. Had a nice game scoring in a variety of ways. Whether it was knocking down threes, mid-range shots, and drives to the hole. If Nova can get both Booth and Newton to play with Arch, then that would be a lovely 3 guard lineup for them.
Dion Wiley-2014 SG Maryland commit. Should be a long range shooting specialist for Maryland. Had a nice sequence where he knocked down 3 triples in a row.
Dwayne Morgan- 2014 SF/PF UNLV. Second time watching him after not being so impressed with him the last time when he was basically a non-factor against BJ Johnson's HS team. Looked much better this time around. Not the most skilled player but competed hard and was very aggressive on offense. Should have no problems fitting into UNLV's no structure, roll the balls out style.
JaQuan Newton and Terry Larrier were both quiet for the most part. Newton scored all of his pts from the line, and Larrier outside of knocking down one long jumper dealt with foul trouble and didn't play much.
