FIBA Update: Andrew Nicholson shows up
Orlando Magic forward Andrew Nicholson has struggled at the FIBA Americas Championship. But he finally put in a strong performance for Canada on Monday.
Canada keeps rolling through the FIBA Americas Championship second round. And the Magic’s Andrew Nicholson finally got his chance to shine.
With Kelly Olynyk getting into foul trouble, Nicholson stepped in and more than took up the mantle. He scored 16 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out six assists, even playing some decent defense, as Canada romped to a 102-82 win over Uruguay.
These are the games that make Nicholson so tantalizing. He can work the post and step out and hit jumpers so well. He hit all three of his 3-pointers and three of five shots inside the arc for Canada.
The highlights still largely belong to Andrew Wiggins, but this is the kind of confidence Nicholson needs to get the most out of this tournament (admittedly against some much weaker competition than the Magic players out at Eurobasket are playing against).
There is no doubt Nicholson has skill. It has always been about getting Nicholson in positions where he can succeed and giving him the confidence to flourish. Sometimes it takes just making a basket to get him into a rhythm because with a decent guard, he is going to find space to operate.
It will be interesting to see how Nicholson follows this game up.
In addition, Melvin Ejim got the call first to support Olynyk and did a good job helping Canada extend their lead early. Ejim with 11 points and six rebounds on 4-for-5 shooting. Ejim continues to be a solid source of energy off the bench, doing a lot of the dirty work.
His play through Summer League and now in FIBA play has to make him a serious contender to make the roster and not just be a D-League assignment for the year.
Canada is next in action Tuesday against Mexico, the best team from Group A.
Jannis Timma rises
Jannis Timma earned his first start for Latvia and contributed seven points and eight rebounds in Latvia’s 72-65 win over Czech Republic.
Timma’s start coincided with a bit of a slow start for Latvia as Czech Republic built on some momentum from a win the previous day. Eventually though, Latvia pulled ahead thanks to strong play from former NBA’er Davis Bertans (nine points on 3-for-11 shooting).
Really it was Latvia’s defense after that first quarter that helped them earn the win. Czech Republic shot only 37.3 percent from the floor and worse than 50 percent from the foul line.
Timma, again to repeat this, is a work in progress. But he showed the variety of his skills in this game. He hit only one of his four 3-pointers, but was 3 for 6 overall. His eight rebounds also continue to show his potential inside and outside potential. That will be the thing to continue to watch for him throughout the tournament.
He has a lot of growing left to do.
Latvia plays Ukraine next on Wednesday.
Tony Parker sets record in win
It was not easy for France as Poland proved perfectly game to upset the homestanding favorites for the tournament, but did not have the plays late in the game, with some critical turnovers and mistakes late. Marcin Gortat‘s 3-pointer at the buzzer was no good and France held on for a 69-66 win to move to 3-0.
The big news coming out of this game was Tony Parker setting the record for most career points scored in Eurobasket history. He had 16 points to lead France. Rudy Gobert did a good job anchoring the defense as both teams struggled offensively.
Fournier was among those players who succumbed to offensive struggles. He scored two points, missing both of his shots in 11 minutes.
His shot has definitely been off so far in this tournament. He is not getting great looks and simply missing shots. Unfortunately this has been part of Fournier’s reputation throughout his first three years in the league. He is just really inconsistent and streaky from beyond the arc. Right now he seems to be going through a cold streak.
Like any young player, he has to find a way to contribute without scoring, especially on the defensive end.
For France, Fournier’s absence is not absolutely killer since they see him coming off the bench for 12-16 minutes. For sure though, later in the tournament France will need Fournier to make some big shots to maintain leads in the second quarters.
France next plays Russia on Wednesday.