Kelsey Plum won two WNBA championships with the Las Vegas Aces and learned a lot about what it takes to win a title. One of those lessons she shared on the October 19 episode of Girls Tripp with Jordan Robinson, Allie Clifton, and Ryan Ruocco is the importance of winning individual matchups.
“Becky Hammon used to say this all the time, but watching it, it really rings true,” Plum said. “Win your matchup. Win your matchup offensively, win your matchup defensively. And if you can win three out of five, you have a really good chance to win the game.”
Winning her matchup is exactly what Jordin Canada is doing for the Atlanta Dream, outplaying Veronica Burton in the finals despite her own shooting struggles.
Jordin Canada is winning her matchup with Veronica Burton
Jordin Canada has played and won at the highest stage in the WNBA. She won two titles with the Seattle Storm as Sue Bird’s backup. Now, she is the starting point guard for another contender, and her experience is showing.
Despite a quiet Game 1 and overall inefficient shooting, Canada has still been invaluable for the Dream. She is not just bringing it defensively. She is also almost averaging a double-double for the finals with 10.3 points and 8.3 assists per game. She was even on triple-double watch in the Dream’s two victories.
Canada is making plays for her teammates, contributing defensively, and, perhaps most importantly, putting pressure on the rim when her 3-pointers aren’t falling.
Veronica Burton, meanwhile, has struggled mightily to have an impact as a scorer and put up her usual assist numbers. She’s averaging just 6.3 points and 3 assists with 2.7 turnovers per game in the finals. Those are not great numbers for someone who was a double-digit scorer in the regular season, a high-level playmaker, one of the more ball-secure point guards in the entire league.
Canada has established herself as the best playmaker in the series and someone who can consistently put pressure on the rim. Her ability to do that, while Burton isn’t having a comparable impact is giving the Dream an edge offensively.
If Canada can continue to outplay Burton, it could be one of the deciding factors in the series.
Jordin Canada has been phenomenal in the playoffs
The finals are actually Canada’s worst statistical series so far. She scored at least nineteen points in four of the five games coming into the finals, and really stepped up as a scorer against the New York Liberty when Allisha Gray missed most of the series with a finger injury.
Even when taking on a bigger scoring load, Canada still managed to maintain her high-level playmaking. She recorded 11 assists and zero turnovers with her 19 points to eliminate the Liberty on their home court.
Moreover, Canada and DeWanna Bonner are the only players in the Dream’s rotation with championship experience. Even head coach Karl Smesko has never been at this level in the WNBA. Their leadership has been just as invaluable as their on-court production.
Add us as a preferred source on Google