Adika Peter-McNeilly grabbed a defensive rebound to seal an 84-81 win for the Edmonton Stingers in their first contest of the Basketball Champions League of Americas (BCLA) tournament.
The Stingers, representing the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) had just pulled off an upset win in their debut match over last year’s BCLA finalists, Real Estelí.
Local Canadian talent was on display for the world to see. The bright light of the Canadian Elite Basketball League got a little brighter on the international stage. Already recognized by players, coaches, and agents around the world as one of the stronger FIBA affiliated leagues, the CEBL served notice it would be a force when it comes to head-to-head play against the best from other premier professional leagues.
As the CEBL enters its fourth season this summer, its global presence will further expand. The league has announced that effective February 1 each team will allocate one spot on its 10-man active roster to what will be known as an International Player - a non-American import.
“Basketball is a global game,” said CEBL Commissioner Mike Morreale. “If you look at the top European leagues, Asian leagues, what have you, they are proud domestic leagues that have import spots, generally reserved for Americans or Canadians. So, we kind of took that same approach, but tweaked it around.”
Per Morreale, an international player will be classified as any athlete who is not Canadian or American. Athletes with Canadian/American citizenship who have a second international passport will be counted as domestic players.
The CEBL is a league created by Canadians for Canadians. Even with the addition of the International roster spot, the CEBL will see a record minimum of 60 roster availabilities for domestic athletes due to the addition of three new franchises – the Scarborough Shooting Stars, Newfoundland Growlers, and the Montreal Alliance.
The league also mandates a minimum two domestic players per team be on the court at all times.
“We're creating jobs,” said Morreale. “Our number one goal is to make our domestic talent better.”
While the CEBL will still be inherently a Canadian brand of basketball, adding international flare will allow domestic players to develop a more holistic skillset by further exposing them to different styles of play. This could also have positive repercussions for the Senior Men’s National team and more broadly, the future of Canadian basketball.
The nuances in the international game is an area Hamilton Honey Badgers Head Coach Ryan Schmidt has witnessed first-hand while serving with the London Lions of the British Basketball League this off-season.
“These players are a different kind of talented,” said Schmidt. “A lot of North American players are used to the athleticism and the physicality versus over in Europe you're going to see more tactically sound basketball. We see big guys out hammering the ball a lot more and shooting three-pointers. I think that this addition by the CEBL going to be able to showcase another side of the international game that maybe a lot of players and even some coaches haven't got the chance to experience.”
As Schmidt alluded to, the task of recruiting players from around the world will also serve as a growth opportunity for CEBL front offices. Commissioner Mike Morreale is looking forward to seeing how each franchise approaches their roster composition this season.
Certain organizations may recruit younger players and work with them over multiple seasons. Other teams may adopt a win-now mindset and acquire an athlete with an accomplished international resume. While some clubs may build around local Canadian talent, others could decide to solidify import signees first.
The possibilities are endless. And so are the benefits for Canadian basketball.
This new roster composition also allows the opportunity for CEBL bench bosses who coach internationally to work with players from their club teams year-round. It is rare to find an elite league such as the CEBL competing during what is the offseason for most teams (May-September). As Ottawa BlackJacks General Manager Jevohn Shepherd explains, this will be an attractive feature for foreign talent. However, there is more than just high-level basketball that Canada has to offer.
“It’s a very unique situation because now you’re allowing this international player to come in and learn the Canadian culture,” said Shepherd. “For the longest time, all these Canadian guys that are playing in the league, and even some individuals in front offices like myself and Jermaine Anderson, have been the international player, the ‘import’, when we've played abroad. We were the ones before who were assimilating to the culture, the language, the food while playing basketball. We gained exposure and now we're able to offer that opportunity for our international counterparts.”
Between the welcoming nature of Canadians, to the diversity across the nation, international players will have an inside look at the country’s culture and a North American style of basketball.
While international scouts, coaches, and front office personnel may not have the direct experience of living in Canada, they will likely be watching players from their home country who venture to the CEBL. CEBL games have drawn a livestream audience around the world since the start of the 2020 season. This additional exposure may allow domestic talent to be scouted to play overseas come September. Networking and building relationships with international clubs may also lead to future growth opportunities for the CEBL, a league that is gaining global notoriety.
Basketball is an international game, and the CEBL is representative of this.
As Shepherd explains, there may be differences in playing style, in language and in culture. “But the fact still remains that once you toss that ball up, everybody's going to compete to win,” he said.
CEBL free agency opens February 1.