According to the Canadian Press, there will be 16 Canadians to begin the 2019-20 regular season on National Basketball Association rosters. Canada has the second most players in the NBA, as they are only behind the United States.
Of the 16 Canadians, five are starters according to Rotoworld. They are Denver Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray of Kitchener, Ontario, New York Knicks small forward RJ Barrett of Toronto, Ontario, Oklahoma City Thunder shooting guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Toronto, Ontario, Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Andrew Wiggins of Thornhill, Ontario and Miami Heat power forward Kelly Olynyk of Toronto, Ontario.
Murray had a career year in 2018-19 as he averaged 18.2 points per game, 4.8 assists per game and 4.2 rebounds per game. The Nuggets reached the Western Conference semifinals, before losing in seven games to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Barrett was selected in the first round, third overall by the Knicks out of Duke University. He is set to start for the Knicks at small forward, but can also be a shooting guard.
Gilgeous-Alexander was traded in the offseason from the Los Angeles Clippers to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Paul George blockbuster transaction. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 10.8 points per game as a rookie in 2018-19.
Wiggins averaged a career high in rebounds in 2018-19 as he averaged 4.8 boards per game. He also averaged 18.1 points per game and 2.5 assists per game last year in Minnesota.
Olynyk is in his second year with the Heat after playing his first four NBA seasons in Boston. In 2018-19, he averaged 10 points per game and 4.7 rebounds per game.
Of the other 11, expect Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson of Brampton, Ontario and Sacramento Kings point guard Cory Joseph of Toronto, Ontario to get a lot of playing time. The other nine Canadians are Knicks power forward Ignas Brazdeikis of Oakville, Ontario, Clippers power forward Mfiondu Kabengele of Burlington, Ontario, Memphis Grizzlies small forward Dillon Brooks of Mississauga, Ontario and power forward Brandon Clarke of Vancouver, British Columbia, New Orleans Pelicans shooting guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker of Toronto, Ontario, Orlando Magic power forward Khem Birch of Montreal, Quebec, Toronto Raptors center Chris Boucher of Alma, Quebec, San Antonio Spurs power forward Trey Lyles of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Dallas Mavericks center Dwight Powell of Toronto, Ontario.
