LOS ANGELES -- Isaiah Canaan is stuck in a nasty slump, but the third-year guard’s confidence remains undaunted.
Canaan entered Saturday’s game against the Clippers struggling in all areas. In his last three games, Canaan is 9 of 35 from the floor, has as many turnovers as assists (3) and is minus-27 defensively.
It is a stark contrast from his previous six-game stretch, where he averaged 15.2 points on 47.4 percent shooting.
“It’s just part of the game of basketball,” Canaan said. “There’s going to bad nights. You just have to abide by the 12:00 rule. At 12:00, it’s a new day and you gotta forget about it. I’m not worried about it too much.”
Canaan’s optimism is matched by coach Brett Brown. In discussing the team as a whole, Brown signaled he wasn’t worried about his players’ ability to bounce back.
“One of the benefits of coaching so many (young players) is they forget quick, and in our environment they need to,” Brown said. “We’ll come out swinging. More times than not this group jumps out and competes.”
Canaan has an opportunity for a rebound performance against the Clippers, particularly defensively on the perimeter. He will be charged with defending red-hot Clippers sharpshooter J.J. Redick, who shot 50 percent from three-point range in the month of December. Holding Redick in check would be nothing less than a spectacular accomplishment for Canaan.
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“You have to make every catch difficult for him,” Canaan said. “Try to be aggressive with him and give him no open looks. He’s not shooting 50 percent for no reason. If we can limit those open looks, then we’ll have done our job.”
Sampson starting
Forward JaKarr Sampson was in the starting lineup against the Clippers after leaving Friday’s game with a sore left shoulder.
Sampson was injured during a third-quarter collision and sat out the fourth quarter of the Sixers’ 93-84 loss to the Lakers. Brown said there was no structural damage to Sampson’s shoulder.
“We’ll start him and see how that is,” Brown said. “If it’s too sore we’ll pull him quickly. We felt it would be best to throw him in there and see how it goes. We hope it’s not going to impact his primary role, which is to guard.”
Hollis Thompson (right eye corneal abrasion) and Joel Embiid (right foot) remain out for the Sixers.
Familiar face
Luc Richard Mbah a Moute is starting at power forward for the Clippers. It is his first game against the 76ers since leaving them after last season.
Mbah a Moute averaged 9.9 points and 4.9 rebounds for the Sixers last season and earned glowing praise from Brown.
“He’s a good person and he’s extremely versatile,” Brown said. “We had him guard LeBron (James), we had him guard Al Jefferson, you had him switch out on quick point guards, there was so much he could do. There is a toughness and a physical side and an intellectual side to him that just makes him NBA-ready. The memories I have of him … it’s great to see him.”