The be all and end all for Canadian hoops news, the best in Canadian High School Basketball, Toronto Raptors, sports, entertainment, commentary and opinion...not really...
Just somewhere for hoopheads,sports fanatics and entertainment lovers to get together and talk about the games, athletes and stars that affect our daily lives. Straight talk...and we dont pull any punches!
CROWN has the scoop on Khem Birch...one of the most sought after players in the class of 2012 who has verbally committed to the University of Pittsburgh. The Panthers who play in the vaunted Big East Conference will be adding a player that not only hustles on every single play but has a condor-like wingspan of 86 inches and can gobble up balls that seem to be miles away from the basket. He first impressed many scouts this past summer while playing for the Canadian Junior Men's National Team(JMNT) as they collected a well-deserved bronze medal at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship for Men tourney in San Antonio, Texas. Brazil won silver and the U.S. took the gold as all three teams plus 4th place Argentina qualified for the 2011 FIBA U18 World Championship in Latvia. Then Birch, a Montreal native was extremely dominant at the Nike Global Challenge in Hillsboro, Oregon averaging 22.6ppg and 13rpg on an incredible 70% fg percentage. The guy simply couldn't miss inside. His best game was a monstrous 25 point 20 rebound showing against a U.S.A. East team that featured Rakeem Christmas(committed to Syracuse) and James McAdoo(UNC bound)! Those two are no slouches and Birch handled himself astoundingly against competition that tough! For his Herculean efforts the ridiculously athletic and wiry Birch was named the International MVP of the tournament as Canada took the Bronze Medal finishing up with a 2-1 record. After these impressive showings his ranking sky-rocketed to the top 5 in his graduating class. While many high schoolers take their time before choosing a college it looks from the outside that Birch knew where he wanted to go and tweeted that he was going to PITT for a visit on September 11th. It is now the September 30th and Birch has verbally committed to the Panthers with a couple years of high school to go still.
Coach Jamie Dixon is going in to his eighth year at the school and has compiled an impressive resume while amassing a 188-54 win-loss record and three sweet-16 appearances. Between 2001-2004 Dixon's squad won 3 straight Big East regular season titles and captured their first Big East tournament championship in 2003. This guy can flat out coach and he gets results out of his players while giving them an opportunity to get the most exposure while at the same time usually advancing pretty far in the NCAA tournament. Birch will leave PITT a very very good basketball player and more importantly a better person after playing for Dixon, I'm sure of that.
Cudos to the PITT Panthers and the Big East for snatching up this rising star as Birch enters the realm of the BIG EAST Conference in 2012...
See the CROWN article on his verbal commitment HERE!
7-foot Canadian big man Russell Hicks has garnered a training camp roster spot with the 2-time NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers. Hicks has impressed the Lakers brass and is one of 18 players that will be ballin' alongside Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher and the rest of the Lakeshow. The Niagara Falls, Ontario native played his college ball at Pepperdine from 2004-2006 then transferred to Florida International to finish out his collegiate career. Earlier this summer Hicks, who played a short stint for the NBDL's Iowa Energy, impressed the Lakers brass enough that they decided to offer an invite to training camp to get another look at the athletic pivot.
Check out the writeup HERE from NBA.COM/LAKERS.
By the way...Isiah Thomas(aka Zeke) is the coach of the FIU Panthers...returning for his 2nd year at the helm after some tumultuous years as a GM in New York with the Knickerbockers.
Check out his bio HERE.
But Thomas is also doing his part to combat youth violence in America taking part in the "Rescuing of our Youth from Chaos and Carnage:Effective Strategies to Address Youth Violence" Forum in Washington, D.C. HERE's the info on that worthy cause.
Dylan in action at the B-Game Prospect Camp.
Photo Courtesy of Crownmagonline.com
Recently star PG Dylan Ennis announced that he will attend Rice University as his college choice. He had originally chosen Akron but re-thought that decision citing a rush to commit to the first school that showed interest...
CROWN has the scoop here on Ennis and his decision to go to RICE right HERE.
New Kids On The Block (Article courtesy of ESPN Rise High School Basketball)
The consensus among spectators of Xavier Rathan-Mayes and James Demery Jr., both freshman, was denial at the ScoutsFocus Elite 80. “There’s no way those kids are freshman,” one man shouted while watching from the sideline. “They’re way too good.” But when his friend pointed to the “2014” beside both of their names on the roster, the man’s eyes widened. He said, “Wow.” The shock is understandable, Rathan-Mayes, a combo guard at Christian Faith Center Academy (Creedmoor, N.C.), and Demery, a shooting guard at Oakwood (Greenville, N.C.), had exceptional showings at the showcase and were both picked to play in the all-star game. “I’m just trying to get better every time I step on the floor,” Rathan-Mayes said. “My mindset is to try and be the best in my class. I feel like I have a chance to achieve that if I continue to work hard.” Added Demery: “I’m just having fun. I love to compete. I’m young and it’s all new and exciting to me, but I definitely feel like I can be one of the best. I’ve got a long way to go, but I know getting there will be fun.”
Several months ago CROWN did this piece on Xavier that foreshadowed the success he's having right now at Christian Faith Center Academy...Click HERE to read CROWN's take on this rising star!
A few weeks ago at the 2010 Flight Games at Ryerson, Rathan-Mayes excelled dropping 17 points as well...
CROWN had the details back in August...right HERE.
The recruit scoop also had this interesting take on Rathan-Mayes right HERE.
A-Game Hoops Guelph Phoenix game summaries courtesy of A-Game Hoops...
On Saturday, September 25th the A-Game Hoops Guelph Phoenix Senior Mens team traveled to Kingston to take on The Royal Military College Palladins.
The Phoenix stormed out of the gates opening the game on 16-0 run and never looked back.
The Paladins showed some life behind Matthew Wookie's 21 points (5-9 3pt), but the gap soon widened to 30 points at half. The Phoenix won 104-52 behind the energetic play of their young developmental players. Kevin Pangos finished the game with a double double (14pts,11reb) while Agunwa Okolie poured in 17pts on 7 for 11 shooting from the field. Rhadi Knapp led all scorers with 23 points while grabbing 7 rebounds.
One dark note on the game, Phoenix guard Jay Mott went down in the first quarter with an ankle sprain.
Mott will meet with doctors this week to determine a return date.
The Phoenix had little time to savour the victory as the St. Lawrence College Vikings awaited them the following day.
Agunwa Okolie of Archbishop Denis O'Connor in Ajax, Ontario goes for the slam.
Courtesy Photo Riot Photography
On Sunday, September 26th the A-Game Hoops Guelph Phoenix Senior Mens played St. Lawrence College Vikings...
The Phoenix, only 14 hrs after walking of the court at the Royal Military College, took the floor to do battle with a scrappy, athletic St. Lawrence College Vikings team. The game was a hard fought affair which saw the Phoenix lead by 8 at the half behind solid play from Kyle Julius who finished the game with 20 points.
The second half began with a change of pace as the Vikings narrowed the Phoenix lead to 4. The Vikings momentum was stifled quickly however by an aggressive Guelph Phoenix zone press and a flurry of offense from developmental star Kevin Pangos who seemed to score at will and from all angles. Pangos finished the game with 28 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals leading the Phoenix to a 86-67 win.
After finishing 2-0 this past weekend the Phoenix must quickly prepare for back-to-back games. September 28th sees the Phoenix travel to Barrie to battle the Georgian College Grizzles at 7pm.
The following day the team must head to Waterloo to face the University of Waterloo Warriors at 7pm.
Radhi Knapp is all business at the charity stripe.
Courtesy Photo Riot Photography
A-Game Hoops squad led by Kyle Julius and super high schooler Kevin Pangos.
Courtesy Photo Riot Photography
Kyle Julius is a very serious guy when it comes to basketball. He was serious when he won OFSAA for the Hamilton Cathedral Gaels, he was serious when he played for the Ontario Provincial team, more serious when he played for Furman University and Guelph University becoming the 2nd All-Time leading scorer, even still when he became an OUA All-Star and CIS All-Canadian, and even more serious when he became a pro in Italy's first division. Kyle and his father Stu, who has coached CIS Women's basketball for over 25 years at Lakehead and Laurier decided to ratchet up the seriousness in developing basketball in Canada by starting A-Game Hoops where the slogan is "build your game"! This program run out of the Guelph, Ontario area "has created a system focused on the high school level development of elite high school players while giving accomplished players a venue to continue to play at a very high level", according to the program's website...www.agamehoops.com. The men's team selects the finest junior players in the region and then they become team members. They practice together and then play games against College and University teams, semi-pro and professional squads which forces them to improve their games and learn nuances of the game that they would never learn by just playing against high school and age-group competition. Kyle, who I mentioned played in Europe says that's how club teams in Europe integrate the young studs onto the Men's squads. Nothing like this is being done in Ontario or Canada for that matter says Kyle and he truly believes it is the way of the future if Canada is to continue to ascend the rankings of basketball worldwide. Some development players include Kevin Pangos of Dr. Dennison, Henry Tan of Vaughan, Nem Semic of Cameron Heights, Troy Knight of Vaughan and Agunwa Okolie of Archbishop Dennis O'Connor in Ajax, Ontario.
Guys like Pangos and Tan are leaders on their respective high school squads but here with A-Game they are just one of the guys and seeing them get scolded by one of the coaches is not uncommon during practices, but any critique of the players, especially the development ones always exudes positivity and confidence building aspects. The kids know that they are getting quality teaching and instruction from some of the best coaches that Canada has to offer!
The senior players on the "Phoenix" team as they are called include 6'8" Wisconsin Green Bay grad, Mike King, Dan Eves, a former York University Star, big man Rhadi Knapp of Guelph, and of course Kyle Julius the founder of A-Game. Tut Ruach, the star PG for the York Lions for the past few years, played with A-Game previously and through the games played against high level competition for the program, was able to secure a professional contract in Germany for this season.
A recent report on Eurobasket.com talks about Ruach's signing and mentions the Phoenix team...
Ruach and Woody commit to Itzehoe Eagles - by Moritz Korff
"As announced on their website, the CRE Eagles Itzehoe (Regionalliga North) have landed two import players with Tut Ruach (188-G-85, college: York University) and Martinis Woody (203-F/C, college: Benedict).
Ruach, a Canadian guard out of Toronto, Ontario, was a standout at York University (CIS) and exhibited a double-digit scoring average in each season of his five year-college career. In 2008-09 Ruach averaged 18.5 points, 4.8 boards and 4.0 assists for the Lions. Following his graduation the 25-year-old Canadian of Sudanese descent continued his basketball career Guelph Phoenix. Itzehoe is going to be his first stint overseas."
So the results speak for themselves as a couple other players have gotten contracts after playing for A-Game hoops as well.
But A-Game isn't only the Phoenix and games against high level teams-it's also a organization that provides individual player training, team training, camps and clinics. On the website, Kyle talks about "work ethic, focus and consistency" which he used to bring his game to the next level and become a professional. He and his father work with all participants showing them new offensive and defensive sets, fitness level training and an often overlooked aspect to athletes, nutrition! In order to play well you have to eat well and A-Game firmly believes in treating your body right in order to get the most out of it.
Mauro Di Vito, the Head coach at Villanova College in King City is another quality coach who imparts his basketball knowledge on all the Phoenix ballers.
What's next for the Phoenix: They've started their schedule already defeating Royal Military College and St. Lawrence College this past weekend and play 3 more games this week including tilts against Georgian College, the University of Waterloo and Mohawk College in Hamilton. So if you want to see great quality basketball and also witness the future of Canadian hoops in players like the supremely talented Pangos and the very solid Henry Tan get out to the gyms and take in the action!
2010 FIBA U17 All-Stars including Canada's Kevin Pangos.
Recently FIBA did something very interesting and pleasing with respect to their World Rankings. They have added results from the age-group tournaments to determine how countries throughout the world are ranked.
"For the first time, the U19 and U17 FIBA World Championships for Boys and Girls as well as all U16 and U18 continental championships weigh in to determine the new FIBA categories for boys and girls."
This is phenomenal news for a country like Canada which is becoming a power on the youth stage and a lot of these players such as Myke Kabango, Kevin Pangos, Corey Joseph, Anthony Bennett, Tristan Thompson, and on and on and on will be moving up to the Jr. National men's team and then on to the Sr. National Men's team in the next 2-3 years.
FIBA Secretary General and IOC member Patrick Baumann had this to say about the rankings including the youth categories...“This is a great initiative and one that has been a long time coming. We have to make sure we reward the countries that perform well in youth competitions because the young players coming through the junior ranks are the best investment in the future of basketball.”
The Americans top all 5 lists including the Men's, Women's, Boys, Girls and Combined which is not surprising. Canadian Women are 12th overall, The Girls are 3rd while the Boys are ranked 6th in the world just below Spain at 3 and ahead of Serbia and France at 4 and 5! In the combined rankings Canada is 12th in the world! Great ranking for a country that looks to improve in the coming years! Spain is ranked 2nd combined and Canada is ahead of Turkey, Germany, Puerto Rico and the Czech Republic to name a few in the overall category.
The Turkish Men's side moved up the most on the FIBA rankings after their surprising home-crowd pleasing ascent to the title game against the U.S. Despite the loss in the final they moved up 12 spots to 6th in the world!
The Canadian Men's team has dropped from 19th to 23rd after bowing out of the FIBA World Championships without a win in 5 games. But again, as the younger players improve and move up in the National Program you will certainly see that number shrinking very soon in my humble opinion! Canada is on it's way folks, so the rest of the world better look out for the Red and White of the Canucks.
Go Canada Go!
Combined Ranking (Men/Women/Boys/Girls) after 2010 FIBA World Championship for Men
Rank Country IOC Current Points +/- Rank*
1. USA USA 2498.0
2. Spain ESP 1487.8
3. Russia RUS 1302.0 +1
4. Australia AUS 1233.0 -1
5. Argentina ARG 1129.4
6. Lithuania LTU 909.8 +4
7. Brazil BRA 768.8 -1
8. Greece GRE 755.4 -1
9. France FRA 715.2 +2
10. China CHN 707.9 -2
11. Serbia SRB 647.8 -2
12. Canada CAN 486.4 +5
13. Turkey TUR 464.4 +9
14. Czech Republic CZE 418.2 -2
15. Italy ITA 416.8 -1
16. Korea KOR 388.0 -1
17. Puerto Rico PUR 314.8 +1
18. New Zealand NZL 305.0 -2
19. Croatia CRO 263.2 +2
20. Germany GER 242.0 -7
Peep the full FIBA Combined Ranking HERE.
On the left of the page you can select each individual category like Men's, Womens, Boys and Girls.
Before he and team Canada left for Turkey and the FIBA Worlds, Joel Anthony of the Miami Heat stopped by HoopDome to check things out at the B-Game Exposure Camp. Now we all know that the Canadian squad left the tournament without a win finishing at 0-5, but Joel did his part and rebounded and played solid defence in the paint for the Canucks. His offensive game is still miles behind his defence but his improvement on the scoring side has risen in the last few years. Fresh off signing a new multi-million dollar contract with the Heat, Anthony talked about his contract as well as him looking forward to playing with Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh down in Miami. Heat Exec Pat Riley had a lot of praise for Anthony during the re-signing but when you hear Anthony talk, he's not one to let all the praise, even from a legend like Riley, get to his head!
Check out my interview with him below...
A relative unknown in Ontario circles...but a proven commodity in the province of Quebec...Yann Charles has parlayed his immense basketball talents into a basketball scholarship to Robert Morris University in suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The 6'5" SF out of Champlain St. Lambert can get it done inside and outside with a game that is versatile and crafty all at the same time. He's also a lefty which makes it doubly tough to guard him on the hard court.
Here's what Robert Morris head coach Andrew Toole had to say about incoming freshman Charles courtesy of http://www.thepaint.net/:
“Yann is a versatile player that can play both inside and outside,” Toole said. “He has great size and strength for an incoming freshman, and that’s going to help him in his transition to Division I basketball. He’s able to step out and make jump shots, but he can also battle down low. I see him competing and contributing in his first season at Robert Morris.”
So look for big things from this Southpaw as he and the rest of the Colonials tackle the elite in the Northeast Conference! Check out the Colonials website right HERE.
Working at HoopDome has it's perks as I got a chance to speak to Stefan Nastic just before departing for the sunny climes of California . He was doing two-a-days at the Dome...in the morning he was working on skill development and in the evening he was improving his cardio/fitness levels.
Nastic is pumped about heading to Stanford and talked about his ascent in the Canadian high school scene and all the work he put into his game. He also discussed his summer ball playing for Serbia's U-18 squad at the Euros where unfortunately his squad was knocked out of going to the finals by Lithuania in the semis. Serbia was up 13 with just over 5 minutes to go but wasn't able to pull out the victory as Lithuania won it 67-66 in an amazing game...actually Stefan said it was the best game he's ever played in!
Despite the loss and his team also losing the Bronze medal game to finish 4th, Nastic saw the value in playing for his country and leaving everything on the floor at the end of it all.
His positive attitude and energy will be contagious for the Cardinal this fall and he will no doubt be a coach and fan favourite!
Calling all ballers. The Erie Bayhawks...the D-League affiliate of the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA is holding free-agent tryouts on Saturday October 2nd and Sunday October 3rd!
Go to http://www.eriebayhawks.com/ for more information. There is a $150 registration fee for applications received by October 1st($175 after) but if you make the squad who cares about that small cash outlay!
Check out the application form at http://www.nba.com/dleague/erie/media/BayHawks_Tryout_Information_TORONTO.pdf
Should be an interesting turnout...and maybe a Toronto baller can make the squad!
Heck...maybe I'll try out for the team,
"Starting at PG, a 6'0" Toronto native out of York University, Drew Ebanks"
Well maybe not...only in my dreams!
Myck Kabongo is a point guard. Myck Kabongo is rated the 2nd best point guard by most scouting services in the 2011 class. Myck Kabongo is a very confident young man who speaks well and plays the game of basketball pretty well too.
He's the point guard of the future. He's got great handles and penetrates defences with ease due to his quickness and creativity with the ball in his hands! Kabongo is part of an amazing group of point guards coming up for Canada that will no doubt be erasing the memory of a dismal Canadian finish at the World's by our Senior Men's national team. Canada is ready to take it up a notch and Kabongo will lead the way.
The Texas commit will be ballin' this fall at Findlay Prep in Las Vegas, Nevada where he will be joined by fellow Canadians Anthony Bennett and Naz Long! Coming off back to back National titles while being led by Canadians Tristan Thompson and Cory Joseph, Kabongo and the his squad know that a three-peat will be the only outcome worth talking about at Findlay. Canadian ballers seem to gravitate to the highly regarded prep school so it will be interesting to see which Canadians will be suiting up for them in the future.
Crown was there to cover Kabongo and some other outstanding Canadian ballers at the 2010 Flight Games...HERE's the scoop.
I also got a chance for a nice sit down chat with the future Longhorn after the All-Canada Classic...
As you read this Stefan Nastic is down at Stanford University getting ready for his freshman season at the California school.
He was outstanding at the high school level playing for Thornhill Secondary in York region. The competition he will face in the next few months will be miles above that in the high school ranks here in Canada. Nastic comes from a great family and his mother and father have molded an exceptional young man who I think will excel both academically and athletically. Crown had THIS story about his decision to attend Stanford and hoop it up for the Cardinal!
After the All-Canada Classic Nastic was kind enough to speak to me for this interview...
Kyle Wiltjer is American...Kyle Wiltjer is a very good basketball player...but Kyle Wiltjer plays his national basketball for team Canada because his father Greg is Canadian.Kyle Wiltjer will also be attending The University of Kentucky this fall for coach John Calipari in the fall of 2011! Wiltjer, who only announced his decision a short while ago, has a complete post game...and an ability to spot up from mid range and hit from beyond the three point line. He's not overly athletic but is fundamentally sound and has a craftiness to his game that belies his young age! He attends school currently in Oregon for Jesuit in Portland.
HERE is Crown's announcement about his decision to join the Wildcats...
Wiltjer's game is on the rise and I had a chance to speak to him at the All Canada Classic...
Maurice Walker is another huge ball player from Canada who's headed down to play his college ball at the University of Minnesota. The Golden Gophers have another Canadian on the roster; Devoe Joseph and the duo hopes to do big things this season for head coach Tubby Smith. Joseph is a sophomore who was the best high school player coming out of Canada in his senior year.
Walker, all 6'10" and 300lbs of him will look to use his size to dominate other big man in the highly competitive Big Ten Conference.
The two have actually been back up here in Canada as the Gophers, one of several American schools to play exhibition games in the country, including Kentucky, went 3-0 in their Canadian basketball "tour".
Got another interview after the All-Canada Classic...this time super Center Sim Bhullar! This dude is 7'4" and is getting better by the day. He's on a mission to lose weight, get fit and become a serious factor in the hoops game. When I spoke to his sister Azneet at the B-Game camp she said he's got a trainer which will help him accomplish his goals to be in the best shape he could possibly be. This past summer Sim suited up for Team Canada in the FIBA Americas U18 tournament where the Canucks won the bronze medal and qualified for next year's U19 World's! Bhullar and his brother Tanveer are already Stateside playing fo Kiski School in Saltsburg, Pennsylvania.
Crown Mag profiled Sim back in April...check it out HERE.
Here's a nice article by Luke Winn about the Bhullars from CNN/SI...HERE.
Hey folks,
Got some great interviews on Youtube that I did for CROWN with the rising stars in Canadian basketball...
Here's a nice sit down with Julian Clarke of Oakwood, now attending Santa Clara University(Steve Nash's Alma Mater) after the All-Canada Classic!
Julian is a great young man with a great outlook on life. He believes in getting a good education to go along with his burgeoning basketball career. The son of Canadian basketball legend Norm Clarke, Julian is a product of many hours in the gym for practice and games under the tutelage of his father.
Now he heads to California to pursue his hoops dreams!
If you want more information on the Santa Clara University Broncos check out their website HERE.
John Wall...was supercalifrajalisticexpialidocious in HS! Will he continue to wow any and everybody in the NBA? We sure hope so. Peep the Youtube vid of the number 1 overall pick in the NBA draft in his senior season of high school ball! Enjoy!
Junior Cadougan may be a slightly forgotten man in the Canadian Hoops world...but don't tell that to the former Eastern Commerce phenom. After an unfortunate right Achilles tendon tear before his freshman season at Marquette, the highly skilled point guard has rebounded from an injury that can be devastating to an athlete's career. In fact, Cadougan's sheer will and determination allowed him to play the final 12 games of Marquette's season in 2009/2010 and this summer Cadougan has trimmed weight and says he's ready to fight for a starting job on the Golden Eagles squad.
Cadougan dropped by HoopDome for this interview and tells his Canadian fans he hasn't forgotten them and he's not going anywhere but up in 2010/2011!
Read the story about his miraculous comeback and his sacrifice HERE!
HERE's the prospectus for the upcoming season at Marquette.
There's nothing like Sports...The thrill of U know what and the agony of....blah blah blah!
Join me...Drew Ebanks, a former Global TV(Sports) reporter as I delve deep INSIDE the world of Dunks, Goals and Touchdowns!
TIME TO RISE UP!
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