It didn’t take Sixers coach Brett Brown long to name his new starting point guard, according to Mark Macyk of The Inquirer. Isaiah Canaan, who came from Houston to Philadelphia along with a second-round draft pick on Thursday in exchange for K.J. McDaniels, has been chosen to replace the traded Michael Carter-Williams. “I’m excited to coach him,” Brown said of Canaan. “I think that there’s a youthful spirit and a competitiveness, along with what he’s really known for, which is his shot.”
There’s much more from the Eastern Conference:
- The parting of Carter-Williams and the Sixers was best for both parties, writes Keith Pompey of The Inquirer. Pompey charges that Carter-Williams is a poor shooter, often holds the ball too long, commits too many turnovers and is injury prone. He also cited two public disagreements with the coaching staff during lopsided Sixers’ losses.
- The Wizards followed Friday’s embarrassing loss to the Cavaliers with a “spirited” film session on Saturday, reports J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. The team discussed defensive breakdowns, post-game squabbles and the generally awful effort that led to a 38-point loss on national television. “When you got good guys like we got on the team, guys speak up and let guys know what need to be done,” said newly acquired guard Ramon Sessions. “As a pro you don’t look at that and take that in the wrong way. You take that in a way to make the team better. We’re going to be fine.”
- Larry Sanders gave up a lot of money Saturday in accepting a buyout from the Bucks, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today. Amick wrote that Sanders received about $15.2MM of the $38MM left on his contract, in addition to what he already earned this season.
- Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith tells Marc Berman of The New York Post that he “wasn’t the right fit” for the Knicks‘ triangle offense. Smith and Iman Shumpert were traded from New York to Cleveland on January 5th. “It was tough from a mental standpoint,” Smith said. “You start second-guessing yourself and your talent to a certain point. So many guys thrived in that triangle, and you want to put yourself in that class. Not living up to it is kind of disappointing.’’