PRAGUE, Czech Republic– Until recently, the poster child for Canadian men’s basketball was point guard Steve Nash, who attended tiny Santa Clara, was the 15th pick in the draft by the Phoenix Suns in 1996 and went on to establish himself as an NBA All Star and two-time MVP in the league.
Nash was one of the few shining lights in a fractured system that had problems kick starting itself internationally because of spotty representation from its best youth players who were victims of bad advice from questionable travel team coaches and fizzled from a lack of teaching and education in fly by night prep schools like Christian Faith Academy in N.C.
But that is all starting to change with a restructuring of Canada Basketball at the top. Nash is now the president of the federation and has name clout to secure national and corporate sponsorships. Former Raptors’ coach Jay Triano has returned to coach the senior national team while Rowan Barrett, a former St. John’s player and national team executive, has reorganized the grass roots cadet programs to make national teams more attractive to the best players. Barrett has made amends with the three most powerful travel teams– CIA-Toronto, Northern Kings and Grassroots Canada and organized a sports academy for 13- and 14-year old elite prospects in greater Toronto to foster fundamental development and a sense of patriotism and setting the wheels in motion for Canada to qualify for the Olympics for the first time since 2000.
This country of 30 million people is building for a bright future, benefiting from an infusion of elite young prospects who have enrolled at reputable prep school powers in the States to play against the best players in the country on a regular basis.
“They play against such high level of competition in high school, they’re not intimidated by any McDonald’s All Americas they face once they get to college,” said Mark Bayne, one of Nike’s international execs, who is based in Montreal.
Canada is currently ranked 23nd in the world in men’s basketball, but this year alone there were 29 players from Canada who played in the NCAA tournament, including guard Nik Stauskas of Mississauga, Ont., on Michigan, which advanced to the title game; all-America center Kelly Olynyk of Kamloops, B.C., and guard Kevin Pangos of Newmarket, Ont., from top-ranked Gonzaga; guard Junior Cadougan of Toronto from Marquette and power forward Anthony Bennett of Brampton, Ont. from UNLV.
The 6-8, 261-pound Bennett, a 20-year old Larry Johnson clone, went on to make history. This hockey crazed country took center stage in this year’s NBA draft when 6-8 power forward Anthony Bennett from UNLV, who is from Brampton, Ont., made history when he was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first pick overall.
The accomplishment even caught the attention of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who wrote an effusive message on Twitter: “Congrats to @AnthonyBennett for being the first Cdn ever drafted #1 overall in the NBA draft. Good luck in Cleveland, we’re all behind you.”
Bennett, a 260-pound Larry Johnson clone, took the same route so many blue chip prospects from Canada are taking, crossing the border to enroll at Findlay Prep, a nationally ranked prep school in Henderson, Nev, where he became a McDonald’s All American. He previously played for top ranked travel team CIA-Bounce in Toronto three years ago. He will join forward Tristan Thompson, another Canadian who was the fourth pick of the Cavs in 2012. Seven-foot center Kelly Olynyk from Gonzaga’s was a lottery pick this June and five other Canadians have been selected in the past two years.
And the best is yet to come.
“Next year, we could easily repeat history on draft night with Andrew Wiggins,” Bennett said.
Gone are the days when kids like Bennett almost stopped playing in sixth grade because he couldn’t find a team to play on. In the last four years, there have been more players in Canada who are participating in basketball then both soccer and hockey. The NBA and the Toronto Raptors have made basketball more attractive to inner city players from Toronto and Montreal and the rush of immigrants who grew up with a passion for the sport.
Wiggins could take Canadian basketball to the next level.
He is considered the best high school prospect to play in the States since LeBron James. The 6-8 forward from Thornhill, Ont., who has picked up the nickname “Maple Jordan,” averaged 23.4 points and 11.2 rebounds this season for Huntington, W. Va. Prep, which played before huge crowds, especially in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which was a factor in his recruiting. He had 19 points in April at the McDonald’s All-American game in Chicago, a battle between two teams comprised of the best high school players in the United States. Wiggins also wowed fans with a 360-degree dunk in a skills contest beforehand. He has signed with Kansas and is already being penciled in as a one and done who will be the first pick in the 2014 NBA draft. Wiggins has 100 meter speed and a 44 inch vertical leap that translates into Sports Center dunking ability which has made him a darling on YouTube.
Wiggins eventually signed with Kansas. Had he chosen to play in the U19s instead of enrolling in summer school at Kansas to protect what should be a lucrative future, Canada might have been a medal contender here. But Canada is willing to take the big picture view, letting Wiggins finish his one and done season, sign his $300 million dollar deal with salary and endorsements and then represent his country in the World championships in Spain and 2016 Olympics in Rio.
Canada basketball is hoping Wiggins, Bennett, and a young nucleus of players like Thompson, Cory Joseph, Myck Kabongo, Andrew Nicholson and Robert Sacre can pilot Canada up in the international rankings. Wiggins and Bennett were the stars of the country’s U17 team that won a bronze medal in 2011. The Canadian 18-and-under team is currently ranked fourth in the world. The current Canadian U19 team, which reached the quarterfinals of the World Championships here before being overwhelmed by a bigger, deeper, more athletic United States team, is continuing to churn out two or three elite prospects every year.
As things stand, Canada’s U19 team has two legitimate stars, 6-10 Trey Lyles, who was born in Saskatoon, Sash., but grew up with American basketball when his family moved to the Indiana at age 4 and is being recruited by high major programs like Kentucky and Florida; and point guard Tyler Ennis of Brampton, Ont., who prepped at St. Benedict’s in Newark, N.J. and should be the starting point guard at Syracuse. Ennis leads this tournament in scoring. Both could be on the senior team someday. On the horizon is a 15-year old phenom, guard Jamal Murray, who scored 24 points and was selected MVP of the international game at the Jordan Classic at the Brooklyn Barclays Center.
Canadian basketball is on the verge of a golden age.
The door could open wide next year at the World Championships in Spain if Canada’s senior men’s team can re-establish itself as a world power.
