The dribble up threes are my main concern and what I was alluding to. Even in RGV he still has a tendency to get away with that especially early in games, but if he tries that up in the NBA, its really going to piss off McHale and get him on the bench. At Murray State and at times in the D-League, those shots aren't terrible if he's hitting them, but in the NBA (especially for a 2nd round pick rookie as the 4th string option) that could really hurt his chances of getting PT.
I wan't to see some aggressiveness when Cannon gets into the game. When he catches the ball at the arc will he hesitate and pass up and open 3 pointer or will he have the confidence to take the shot with out a second thought? Few things drive me crazier than for players to pass up open shots or over pass the ball around the court. The very 1st thing i want to see from Cannon is confidence on the court to take that shot when it is given to him and do it without hesitation. After that I want to see if he can recognize the situation on the floor (i.e. is Dwight standing all alone under the basket calling for the ball).
Agreed. I want to see Canaan get to it. No passivity. Granted, McHale will only play him if Brooks faints on the court from lack of break time ("get him some smelling salts, bring him some Gatorade, he'll be fine"), but I want to see Canaan play. I'm thinking and hoping he's a diamond in the rough, someone passed over because no one's even heard of Murray State.
While shooting terrible from the three point line, I would love to see canan and covington both being called up from the d league.
LOL. Isaiah Canaan playing in his rookie season in his first game is NOT going to be shooting blanket dribble-up threes. He ain't that stupid. There's a big difference between being the Russell Westbrook of the d-league with the green light and full support of the team than there is coming in as as rookie 3rd string point guard playing alongside Harden and Company in your first game in the NBA. Now I do expect that if there is a dribble-up three opportunity and he's got a big man trailing in rebounding position that he would take the dribble up three. That would be smart basketball. But to just come down and fire it up....no way he does that.
Not sure what is so funny to you? Did you not see any preseason games, or watch any RGV games this year??? Its a shot that is in his arsenal that he does take. If he can make them at the NBA level at a high clip than great, but I know how NBA coaches are, and if he comes in and takes this shot and misses, its just going to stunt his opportunities to get consistent PT this year. So what's your argument of the day you want to start with.... dribble up threes outside of the offense are a quality shot for 2nd round pick PG's who are 4th in the depth chart at the NBA level??? -I've watched quite a few of the Viper games this year and think this kid could be a nice NBA player, but he's going to have some adjustments to make playing alongside other perimeter play-makers, and needs to make sure he's locked in 100% on the defensive end. He has a tendency to ball-watch a little bit on that end. If I was coaching him i'd tell him to go back and watch footage of Kyle Lowry's first year with the Rockets coming off the bench. That type of play is his ticket to earning PT from McHale.
It depends on how well he is defended. If he receives as much attention at the three point line as Beverley, Lin, or Brooks, he will have the green light. The Rockets offense is about as effective as a 35.7% three pointer with no chance of an offensive rebound. If he is not guarded tightly on a dribble up three even without a rebounder trailing the play, his dribble up three (I suspect his dribble up three is well over 40% in the D League) would likely be the best opportunity would have in that possession. I think NBA defenders will give him less chances for dribble up threes. Canaan is going to shoot and make a lot of threes in the NBA. I am much more concerned with his defense. Edit: He is also going to miss a lot of threes. I think McHale knows this.
True. I think its a shot that the coaches know he can make at a decent clip so I don't rule it out of ever seeing. However I think its just going to come down to how he meshes with the other players in his shot selection that will be telling for his PT over everything. Other people getting shots within the defense, and getting ball movement established are more important to the coaches at this point. Keep in mind that there was not Dwight Howard in the D-League for him to play with. There was no James Harden running pick and roll in the D-League. Its just gonna be interesting to see how he plays off the ball and sets up plays outside of the normal pick and roll plays (if you can call them plays) in the Valley. But yeah, I'm less concerned with that as I am with his defense. He's a bit slow closing out on shooters with RGV now, and often ball watches. I think he looks like a real talent, and I'm hopeful for him, but the problem is I know he's going to be asked to do things with the Rockets that I've never really seen him do before consistently. The Murray State, RGV play is probably more engrained in his playing mentality than the Rockets/Howard/Harden way. I am prepared for him to go through an adjustment period, and look a little lost in his first couple of games. My fear is that he might press too much offensively if he doesn't get going right away because he wants to make a mark on the game.
What is so funny is imagining what McHale's reaction would be if Canaan pulled that. He'd yank him so fast it'd make your head swim. And I'm pretty sure Canaan knows that already. Yes I've watched all the RGV games. They're down there gunning, working on transition, working on pulling up quick, catching and shooting quickly, so they can fit in with the big club. And Canaan is Russell Westbrook down there. But RGV is not the big club. Canaan will probably overcompensate and pass too often and pass up shots at first that he should be taking in order to fit in. What I'll be looking for IF he actually gets in the game tonight (probably won't if Lin is playing or probably will only get scratch minutes) is does he slap the floor and man up on Monta and Jose? I'm already confident that given a few games to familiarize himself with this teammates that he'll be good to go on the offensive end. So what's your argument of the day you want to start with.... dribble up threes outside of the offense are a quality shot for 2nd round pick PG's who are 4th in the depth chart at the NBA level??? Uhhhhhhh, no.
I hope to get to see Canaan play with Howard, Lin, Parsons, and Casspi tonight. Lin-Howard PnR appears it will cause a vacuum of defenders toward the paint leaving Rocket 3 point shooters licking their fingers like Yukon Cornelius licks his pick ax. Edit: The above comment is intended for tonight's game with Lin covering Ellis and Canaan covering Calderon.
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Time to let this kid play. Defensively, he can't be any worse than AB. He's short too, but he's built like a tank, so he's not at a complete disadvantage, like AB is most of the time. Offensively, AB has been alright the past two games, but that comes from just shooting well from three. He's not drawing fouls or getting assists. Like much of the team, hasn't shot great from 3. Canaan, at the very least, is as good of a shooter. He's built to be able to take fouls. Most importantly, he's a rookie. Yes, that's important. It means he's going to do what you tell him to because he's on a shorter leash and has no history here of doing his own thing. Give it to Dwight down low, get open, be ready to shoot. Every. Single. Time. Heck, you can even go Harden/AB/Canaan/Jones/Dwight in some cases, but the staff has to be more proactive when the offense is sputtering. Yeah, i know, top ranked offense, defensive issues, blah blah. Well, in crunch time our offense isn't top ranked, IIRC. Besides, didn't we get Dwight so he could change games defensively almost alone? That's why he's here getting paid max dollars. Put the pressure on him a little more. That's what being a superstar is all about.
