Ottawa BlackJacks Sign Canadian Guard Keevan Veinot
The Ottawa BlackJacks of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) announced Tuesday the signing of Canadian Guard Keevan Veinot for the upcoming 2024 CEBL season.
A six-foot-four guard from Port Williams, Nova Scotia, Veinot averaged 11.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.1 steals, and 22.8 minutes in 87 professional games played in Canada, in Belgium, and in the Netherlands.
Veinot is currently wrapping up his 2023-24 season with the Port of Antwerp Giants in BNXT, the highest professional basketball league in Belgium and the Netherlands. Across 25 games played, he has maintained an average of 8.9 points. On November 17 against Limburg United, Veinot scored a season-high 20 points, including two three-pointers, and contributing two rebounds, five assists, and four steals. In the preceding season, he played for LWD Aris Leeuwarden in the same league, where he averaged 17.0 points per game. One of his standout performances occurred on February 18 against Donar Groningen, where he scored a season-high 33 points, hitting all five of his three-point attempts and going four-for-four from the free-throw line.
Veinot, selected in the first round by the Honey Badgers in the 2021 CEBL U SPORTS Draft, tipped off his professional basketball journey in the CEBL. Returning for a second season with the Honey Badgers in 2022, he averaged 6.2 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists over 21 games. He posted eight multi-assist games and five double-digit scoring games.
With a decorated collegiate career, Veinot represented Dalhousie University from 2017 to 2022, accumulating numerous accolades. These include being named Atlantic University Sports (AUS) First Team All-Star in 2019-20 and 2021-22, First Team All-Canadian in 2019-20, and AUS All Rookie Team in 2017-18, among others. In 2019-20, he secured the AUS Men’s Basketball MVP, a first in Dalhousie University's history. He led his team in scoring average (15.6), minutes played (30.3), rebounding (5.2), assists (5.5), and steals (2.3) that season.
Veinot's basketball roots run deep in his family. His twin sister, Jayda Veinot, played for the University of New Brunswick (2022-24) and Acadia (2018-22). His father, Kevin Veinot, was an all-star at Acadia, notably contributing to the 1987-88 team that reached the national final. His mother, Jennifer Hale, achieved success as a two-time provincial high school champion at Cobequid Education Centre and as an AUAA MVP at the University of New Brunswick.
The Ottawa BlackJacks 2024 home opener will take place at the Arena at TD Place on May 29. Fans can now purchase BlackJacks season seat memberships, Flex Packs, and group tickets at theblackjacks.ca/tickets. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact the Ottawa BlackJacks Membership Services team directly at 613-690-0519 or by email at [email protected].
Quotes:
“I'm very excited to be back in the CEBL and join the BlackJacks organization. I have a long-lasting relationship with Coach Derouin and I look forward to playing for him. Ottawa’s fanbase and basketball experience is one that I am familiar with as an opponent, and I can't wait to embrace it as a BlackJacks player.”
- Keevan Veinot, Guard, Ottawa BlackJacks Basketball Club
“Keevan is a versatile and multi-faceted point guard who can play all three guard positions. He has a high IQ, and he is a high character player. He checks all the boxes for the Ottawa BlackJacks culture and we’re looking forward to welcoming him to Ottawa.
- James Derouin, General Manager and Head Coach, Ottawa BlackJacks Basketball Club
About the Ottawa BlackJacks
The first expansion franchise of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL), the Ottawa BlackJacks showcase the best of basketball and entertainment in the nation’s capital. The Ottawa front office brings NBA, NBA G League, national team, NCAA and major international pro league experience to the franchise. Led by General Manager and Head Coach James Derouin, Ottawa plays its home games out of the world-class Arena at TD Place in Lansdowne Park. The anticipation is building for the upcoming 2024 season, slated to tip off at home on May 29 against the Edmonton Stingers. For more information, visit www.theblackjacks.ca.
About Canadian Elite Basketball League
A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 73% of its 2023 rosters being Canadian. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. Fourteen players have signed NBA contracts following a CEBL season, and numerous CEBL players attend NBA G League training camps every year. The CEBL season runs from May through August. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.