It was a travel day, hours after the Atlanta Dream defeated the Toronto Tempo at State Farm Arena, and players were in and out of the Gateway Center Arena for a final walkthrough before jumping on the plane to their West Coast trip.
But when Jordin Canada enters a room, she commands attention in a different way.
Not because of the black Los Angeles Dodgers hat. Not because of the Jordan hoodie or Jordan 4 White Cements that she had on.
It was the “Hey, how are you doing,” that she greeted a Dream employee with when she walked through the door out of my view.
She walked through the door, and you knew it was her because she’s always saying hello.
“Hey, Michael. I appreciate you doing this,” she said.
Mind you, it’s her taking time out of her busy schedule to do this with me.
I wanted to do a film session with her.
It’s a project that I’ve floated around for about a year now, and with the WNBA schedule being what it is, we were able to find a 30-minute window to link up before Canada and her teammates jumped on the plane to head to Golden State to begin a West Coast stretch.
Again, it’s a project that I’ve wanted to do for a while, but the actual time to break down the film came at the perfect time, as Canada is playing at an All-Star level in her ninth season.
“That’s my nine-year vet, that’s what I call her all the time, but she’s been hooping this whole season, and I’m just super proud of her,” Te-Hina Paopao said of Canada. “She’s been going full go this year, and I’m just super proud of her, and that she’s been moving our team along and getting that chemistry right. She’s just been distributing the ball really well, shooting the ball really well, just making great reads as a point guard for her.”
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I asked Canada if she felt like the Year 9 vet that she is, or if she still feels like the kid who entered the league out of UCLA.
“A little bit of both,” Canada said. “I do feel, because I have been in this league for nine years, I do consider myself obviously a vet. The experience that I’ve had being on championship teams and what it takes to get back there, but I also feel like I still feel like I’m young and still feel like I just got into the league.”
The one thing that Canada hasn’t accomplished in her nine-year career, though, is being an All-Star.
She didn’t say it outright, but her teammates and coaches had no problem advocating for her to make the All-Star team.
“I believe she belongs on the All-Star team, that’s how well she’s played every game,” head coach Karl Smesko said to reporters before the Dream’s game against the Valkyries. “She kind of reads what the situation is. If they’re going to help a lot, she’s going to kick it out to open shooters and make the right decision. If you’re going to take away the shooter, she’s going to be more aggressive trying to get to the rim.
“The last five games, she’s just been amazing with her assist-to-turnover ratio. And when you compete that hard on the defensive end and have an impact on the defensive end, and you’re doing what you’ve been doing on the offensive end, I just think you deserve to be an all-star.”
It’s a good point about the assist-to-turnover ratio.
Heading into the West Coast trip, Canada led the league in the category and was in the midst of a stretch where she had 46-plus assists to just six turnovers in a five-game span.
The only other player to achieve that in WNBA history was Sue Bird.
Before we started to break down the film, I asked Canada if improving on her assist-to-turnover ratio was a goal of hers this year.
She said it wasn’t just a goal to improve, but a goal to lead the league in the category.
“That actually was one of my goals this year that we set to lead the league in a sister turnover ratio, and that’s just due to, you know, watching the film and seeing last year where I was forcing a lot of things that weren’t good passes or trying to creep in passes,” Canada said. “I think this year was the focus of just making the right play every single possession, and I mean it’s working out so far, so I just want to continue doing what I’ve been doing.”
On the surface, Canada can get lost in the shuffle on a Dream team that is loaded with all-stars and award winners. But not only is she the engine that drives the team, she also has the numbers to back up her case as an all-star.
Canada trails only teammate Rhyne Howard in steals per game, is responsible for 33% of the team’s points this year, is top 15 in net points, top 12 in defensive rating, and top 15 in offensive rating.
“Being here nine years and understanding my strengths and my role now with this team, it’s just a different role that I’ve had to be in that I haven’t been in before, but it’s a rewarding role, to be honest. I love to facilitate,” Canada said. “I love to pass on my teammates, and just get them the ball in the right spots for them so all they have to do is shoot and knock it down.
“So it’s been fun to play with this, this group of girls, and knowing that we all have each other’s back, and we’re very unselfish, but I think for me it obviously starts with me being able to facilitate and be aggressive both offensively and defensively.”
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And that’s where the idea of the film session came from. Canada is explosive on the court. It’s her speed and ability to get downhill that is noticed among evaluators and observers, but she’s more of a five-tool player to borrow from the world of baseball.
So, when I put this idea together, I had to go through film of Canada from 2024 to 2026 with the Dream and try to find seven plays that I wanted her to walk me through.
I couldn’t cut it down to seven, so I went with nine.
That is, until the Tempo game, when Canada had a play late in the third quarter that I just had to have her walk me through.
It was a loose ball that resulted in a behind-the-back pass to Howard for a knockdown three-pointer.
“She’s just been really setting the tone for us as our point guard,” Howard told The IX Basketball after the game. “She’s making sure we’re all on the same page, making sure that we have energy. I think when she’s playing with the pace that she’s been playing with lately, we have to follow suit and be right behind her.”
OK, 10 it is.
Without further ado, let’s get into some film breakdowns.
