Globl Jam Team Canada Team Analysis

Style of Play:

Team Canada likes to play fast and get out in transition. They run a pace and space high octane offense. They have rim running bigs who are quick and explosive getting down the floor, which makes it difficult for opposing bigs to stay in front, allowing them to get to the rim for high-percentage layups. Their bigs put constant pressure forcing defensive attention in the paint, which opens up trail threes and catch and shoot pull-up threes on leak-outs. They get a lot of quick easy fast-break points before teams can set up their defense.

In the half-court, they run a drive and kick heavy offense with a lot of ball movement. They have a lot of shooting and almost everyone on the floor is a three-point threat. They have physical bigs that set good hard picks freeing up the pick and roll ball-handler and initiating drive and kick or dribble penetrations. The guards getting downhill can get deep into the paint, attract multiple defenders, collapse the defense, and find the open shooter for a catch and shoot three as well. When Team Canada's bigs set picks, a lot of the time, it is not to score, but to make the game easier for the facilitators. In the half-court offense, it is a lot of free-flowing offense requiring players to read and react. It involves a lot of pindowns and off-ball screens getting players to their spots for high-percentage catch and shoot threes or using their momentum to attack the closeout and get to the rim.

Team Canada can operate on post ups, but it is not their most effective offense. When they are doing post-ups, they are playing the style of play and pace that fits the other team, not their own.

On defense, they don't switch much. They have their guards fight through picks and funnel their matchup or guide it towards the help defense and rim protection. Canada's strength on the defensive end is having bigs challenge shots at the rim and then getting out in transition after the stop.

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Player Analysis:

Avery Howell:

Position: G

Height: 6 Feet 0 Inches

Age: 19 Years Old

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2028

Avery Howell is a combo guard who can play with and without the ball in her hands. Her main skillset is being an elite three-point shooter. She can get threes off the dribble and in catch and shoot situations. When shooting threes off the dribble she can create a good amount of separation with a step-back jumper. She is constantly moving without the ball, getting to the open space, and relocating. She can also get around off-ball screens or multiple off-ball screens in a possession quickly and fluidly to get to her spot for a high-percentage catch and shoot three or she can use her momentum to get to the rim. She has quick release, fluid shooting mechanics, deep range, and a high release point allowing her to shoot over defenders closing out on her without being affected by their contests. She is aggressively hunting down her shot. She can get her shot off from anywhere on the wings and corners from three-point range. Her ability to knock down threes at a high level early in the game forces opponents to close out on her, forcing her to put the ball on the floor. This opens up more of a driving lane for her to attack the rim. She is effective in putting the ball on the floor and getting to the rim when attacking closeouts. She plays at her own pace and doesn't get sped up. She can get deep in the paint and finish inside. She is a crafty finisher and has good footwork in the paint, navigating around the defense when they crowd the paint and put multiple bodies on her. She is a clutch scorer who wants the big shots and scoring in bunches. Her elite and efficient three-point shooting ability can erase deficits quickly and keep her team in close games.

She isn't just a scorer but also facilitates offense for her teammates as a passer. She knows the spots her teammates operate in, makes them better, and puts them in a position to succeed. She can make passes on drive and kick and in dribble penetration situations, make entry passes into the post, and be a pick and roll passer as a ball-handler. In the pick and roll she is quick to find the roller at the rim and sets them up for a high-percentage shot inside. When she saw double teams and hedges, she got it out of her hands quickly under pressure finding the big to finish inside. When making entry passes into the post, she has poise waiting for the post-up player to get deep post positioning or seal off the defender so they can get a high-percentage shot out of the post.

She is a high-level rebounder for a guard. Her ability to grab rebounds as a guard allows Team Canada to play at a fast pace and in the style they prefer. Her rebounds also come in transition leaking out and following up teammates misses at the rim.

She is a high-level defender. She doesn't let her offensive load or responsibility affect her defense by taking a back seat on that end of the floor. She is an effective one on one defender moving her feet well, beating her matchup to their spot, and cutting off driving lanes. She is also an effective off-ball defender. She is a glue girl able to stick with her off-ball matchup, limiting good off-ball movement and cuts to the rim. She can navigate off-ball screens, get around them quickly, and close the gap on the off-ball player. Her good balance between finding others and knowing when to score, as well as being a two-way player on the defensive end showed she is the best player in this Globl Jam tournament and earned her the MVP. 

Latasha Lattimore

Position: F

Height: 6 Feet 4 Inches

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2026

Latasha Lattimore is best as a rim running big. She gets down the floor quickly on leak-outs when rim running leading to high-percentage layups in the paint. She has good hands being ready to catch and finish in the paint. Her rim-running ability is vital to her team's fast-paced play and getting quick baskets. She can operate in pick and pop situations. She has a quick release, fluid shooting mechanics, and can use her size to shoot over smaller defenders. She is a big who has guard skills. When she draws a closeout after operating in the pick and pop she can put the ball on the floor, take a few dribbles, and play back to the basket or get all the way to the rim. When playing back to the basket she has good footwork getting to the rim with the combination of strength. In a small sample size, she showed flashes operating in the pick and roll as a ball-handler and getting to her spots for a three-pointer off the dribble or getting all the way to the rim on straight-line drives giving her team the option to run big to big pick and roll actions which is tough to stop. She has a tight handle operating in the pick and roll or after putting the ball on the floor, creating offense for herself which makes it hard to force her into turnovers. She also moves well without the ball and can flash out of the high post to get into a three-point shot, or she constantly moves along the three-point line, finding open space, making it exhausting for defenders to keep up. She is also cutting to the rim. She is quick and mobile for her size, allowing her to blow by the off-ball defender and get to the open space. She goes to a push shot or floater with good touch when cutting to the rim over the smaller help defender. Her ability to step out, knock down a three, and space the floor gives Team Canada the luxury of running a double big lineup with more size where she is playing at the 4. She at times, struggles to finish against size and physicality in the paint when matched up against bigger players. She has an effective shot fake that she can use to get the defender up in the air and off-balance and she should look to go to it more often when she is matched up with more size. She sets good hard picks freeing up the pick and roll ball-handler and good off-ball screens freeing up her teammates and making the game easier for them.

She is a defensive anchor who gives interior defensive presence as a rim protector. Her shot blocking comes from the weak-side, where she rotates quickly and block shots. She has timing, instincts, and covers ground when blocking shots. She has discipline, jumping vertically without fouling, limiting her foul trouble. Team Canada would funnel offensive players towards her as the rim protector. She can also fight through off-ball screens and close the gap on the off-ball player limiting quality looks from three-point range using her length. This gives her the qualities of being a small ball 5 in spurts.

Shayeann Day-Wilson

Position: G

Height: 5 Feet 6 Inches

Team: Canada

Shayeann Day-Wilson is an undersized guard who shows flashes of being a three-level scorer. She thrives pushing the pace and getting to the rim in transition. She is quick, explosive, and changes speeds and directions making it hard for defenders to stay in front of her. Despite being undersized she has a strong and physical body and frame that she can use to shield off defenders when driving to the rim. She is aggressive attacking the rim and is always looking to get downhill. When finishing in the paint she has good footwork and is a crafty finisher. She also takes dribble pull-up jumpers in transition. Her ability to get to the rim consistently and do damage caused opposing teams to sag off her and dare her to shoot three-pointers which isn't her main strength. She has a quick release but her shot is flat with little to no backspin on her mid-range and three-point shots. She has lift and elevates off the ground on her shot allowing her to get her shot over other players. At times, she gets off the ground too much and has too much lift which contributes to her flat shot. Her small stature makes it hard to create separation on step-back jumpers off the dribble, allowing the defender to recover and use their length to force a tough shot. She is a rhythm shooter. She can either makes jumpers in bunches or miss them in bunches. She is a better shot maker when she is in rhythm and plays within the flow of the game. She is more effective from mid-range and three-point range when she is a pick and roll ball-handler.

She can operate as a passer on drive and kicks and off dribble penetration. She puts constant rim pressure, gets deep into the paint, collapses the defense, and then finds the open shooter for a catch and shoot three-pointer. She is another catalyst for Canada's drive and kick heavy offense. At times, she can throw passes through tight windows and length and over dribbles through traffic which forces her into turnovers.

She is a clutch scorer and one of Canada's go-to scorer. She wants the ball in her hands and team Canada would run plays intentionally for her to get her quality looks. She is very decisive and has a poise and calmness to her at the end of games. She doesn't let poor shooting discourage her from taking shots at the end of games.

She is a high-level defender and has the defensive qualities you want in an undersized guard. In one on one isolation situations she has defensive lateral quickness and can take away driving lanes to the rim. She is a stronger and more physical guard than she looks so opposing players aren't able to back her down despite the lack of size she has compared to other players. She has the ability to fight through picks. She moves well through them laterally with a low base. She can also pick up the ball handler from the backcourt, apply resistance, and wear them out preventing drives to the rim. She can anticipate and get into passing lanes which sparks fast-break opportunities and creates offense from her defense.

Yvonne Ejim

Position: F

Height: 6 Feet 0 Inches

Age: 23 Years Old

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2025

Yvonne Ejim is an interior presence as a rim running big and post up threat finishing efficiently in the paint. She runs the floor well in transition and beats opposing team's bigs down the floor on leak-outs. She has good hands and is ready for catch and finish opportunities. It is hard for opposing teams to keep up with the pace at which she plays. She is vital to Team Canada playing at a fast pace and running their high-octane offense in transition. Her constant rim running puts pressure on other teams and opens up catch and shoot or off the dribble pull-up threes in transition. As a back to the basket post up player, she has the size, strength, and physicality to get deep post positioning. She has good footwork and touch on hook shots in the post. She can also seal off smaller defenders in the post where you can throw it high to her and she can catch and finish. She absorbs contact and gets to the free-throw line. She is effective shooting free throws as a big, which is valuable in keeping her on the floor late in games.

She is an aggressive rebounder. She can get extra possessions and second-chance opportunities with her ability to crash the offensive glass and limit extra possessions and second-chance opportunities for the other team with her ability to grab defensive rebounds. She is able to chase and track down rebounds out of her zone. She grabs tough contested rebounds through traffic and she keeps the ball high making her less prone to being stripped by smaller players and losing possession.

She lets the game come easy to her teammates setting good hard off-ball screens and freeing up a multitude of shooters to get to their spots on pindowns for high-percentage catch and shoot three-pointers. She also initiates dribble handoffs for teammates.

On the defensive end, she is a weak side shot blocker being quick to rotate from the weak side and get to shots. She is also an effective post up defender not giving up deep post positioning and walling up using her strength and physicality.

Tara Wallack

Position: F

Height: 6 Feet 2 Inches

Age: 22 Years Old

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2025

Tara Wallack is a versatile forward with her best skillset being initiating dribble handoffs for teammates, faking dribble handoffs to get to the rim, or playing back to the basket. She has a nice finishing touch in the paint. She has an effective tight handle for her size and she can protect the ball so defenders can't get to it. When attacking the rim she can finish through contact and traffic, getting to the free-throw line. She sets good picks and rolls to the rim using her mobility and quickness. She can also slip picks and find the open space. She can cut to the rim on baseline out of bounds plays and find the open space. She is an inside-out player. Her ability to get to the rim sets the tone to stepping out and getting quality catch and shoot three-pointers. She moves well without the ball finding the open space and relocating for high-percentage catch and shoot three-pointers. She has a quick release on her catch and shoot three-pointers. Her shot is more of a push shot and has a little hitch but she still shoots it efficiently and gets closeouts. When getting closeouts she can put the ball on the floor and is fluid in getting to the rim. She can also use her size on switches to post up smaller players and hit turnaround shots over them. She has a high motor being a hustle player who goes for loose balls and 50-50 balls.

She shows flashes of being a switchable defender in the half-court who can guard multiple positions. She lacks footspeed and defensive lateral quickness but her ability to move her feet well and be physical makes up for it. She is an effective transition defender getting back quickly and forcing tough contested shots at the rim. She doesn't give easy fast-break opportunities and points to other teams. She can defend the post. She matched up against bigger players known to be threats in the post where she walls up, has a strong base, and forces them into tough contested low-percentage off-balance shots.

Phillipina Kyei

Position: C

Height: 6 Feet 8 Inches

Age: 21 Years Old

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2025

Phillipina Kyei is a big whose role is just to set picks for teammates freeing them up. She sets extremely hard picks in the pick and roll and makes the game easier for others. Her picks can be so hard that they take the primary defender out of the possession entirely, forcing a switch into a more favorable matchup that her teammates can attack or initiate Team Canada's drive and kick offense with good ball movement. Her impact won't show in the box score, but it will be reflected in how successful her teammates are offensively. She is someone who will get a lot of screen assists in the pick and roll. When she does get a chance to score, she rolls quickly and hard to the rim allowing Team Canada to run quick pick and roll offense.

On the defensive end, even though she wasn't blocking shots, she protects the rim well having an interior presence changing and altering shots. Her size and length made it hard for opposing teams to finish inside the paint over her.

Merissah Russell

Position: G

Height: 6 Feet 0 Inches

Age: 23 Years Old

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2025

Merissah Russell is an off-ball guard who is best as a catch and shoot threat from three-point range. She moves well without the ball, finding the open space. She has a quick release and fluid shooting mechanics when shooting catch and shoot three-pointers. She is shot ready, doesn't hesitate, and shoots the ball confidently. She spaces the floor for her teammates by being a high volume three-point shooter with high attempts. She also takes three-pointers off the dribble as a pick and roll ball-handler where she gets around the pick quickly and to her spot fluidly. Her three-point shooting forces hard closeouts from the defense and opens up more of a driving lane for her. She can change speeds attacking a closeout and has poise keeping the defense on its heels. She is a crafty finisher and has good footwork in the paint navigating around the rim protection.

She also has a 2 man game with the big by being involved in give and go actions. She has a slight hesitation in her off-ball movements and changes direction making it hard for the defense to stop her from reaching those spots. She goes to a push shot or floater at times when cutting to the rim. She needs better touch around the rim and poise not to rush these shots in the paint when they are uncontested. She also loses body control and takes tough off-balance shots.

On defense she can rotate, be in the right spots at the right time, and draw charges.

Kyrah Daniels

Position: G

Height: 6 Feet 0 Inches

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2027

Kyrah Daniels is an effective 2 guard. She is effective leaking out in transition and getting all the way to the rim. She can finish through contact. She is best in the half-court as a catch and shoot three-point shooter. She has a quick release and fluid shooting mechanics.

Jordyn Wheeler

Position: G

Height: 6 Feet 0 Inches

Age: 17 Years Old

Team: Canada

Draft Year: 2030

Jordyn Wheeler is a player who is extremely young and played above her age group and at a higher level of competition in this Globl Jam tournament. She got a taste of what is to come. In the small sample size she played, she looks like an effective slasher. She is a guard with a quick first step allowing her to blow by defenders, get to the rim, and finish in the paint.