EDMONTON, AB - Do you feel the buzz, Edmonton?
After months of build, the inaugural CEBL draft and the team’s first training camp, the Edmonton Stingers revealed their debut roster on Wednesday in anticipation of their home opener on May 10th at the Edmonton Expo Centre.
“I’m as excited as anyone,” opened Stingers head coach Barnaby Craddock. “To have professional basketball back in Edmonton of this calibre makes for an exciting Friday night.”
The optimism is a stark departure from the previous attempts at professional basketball in the City of Champions. Previous attempts at bringing the sport to Edmonton, frankly, have been abject failures. However, says Craddock, Edmonton is ready for the return of pro hoops.
“I think Edmonton is a basketball town,” commented the Stingers bench boss. “It’s the 2nd most popular sport in the world after soccer, and particularly for the youth, I think it’s fantastic. Basketball in Canada has just blossomed. All the youth of Edmonton getting to see that professional level first-hand is just going to hugely influence kids in our communities.”
The Team
It was an easy answer for Craddock when asked what he was looking for in his players.
“Skill, honestly.” stated the head coach. “It’s FIBA basketball; all five guys (on the floor) need to be able to play the game.”
“The second thing is speed,” continued Craddock. “We want to play fast. We want to be scoring over 100 points per game, which isn’t the easiest thing to do, but we want to play with tempo and provide an exciting brand of basketball for our fans.”
“This team wants to play with passion. We’ve hand-picked these guys come into town. We really looked hard at their character and we wanted people who could fit into our team’s environment.”
As part of the league’s strategy to showcase and develop local talent, each CEBL roster must consist of at least 70% Canadian players. Additionally, says Craddock, one player on the 10-man roster has to be on a USports developmental contract.
The Roster
- Akeem Ellis • G • 6’6 • Coppin State University • Brooklyn, NY
- Grandy Glaze • F • 6’7′ • Grand Canyon State University • Toronto, ON
- Jordan Baker • G/F • 6’7 • University of Alberta • Edmonton, AM
- Kenny Otieno • PF • 6’3 • University of Alberta • Nairobi, Kenya
- Mamadou Gueye • F • 6’7 • University of Alberta • Quebec City, QC
- Narcisse Ambanza • G • 6’2 • University of Winnipeg • Toronto, ON
- Geoff Pippus • 5’8 • G • University of Calgary • Winnipeg, MB
- Xavier Moon • G • 6’2 • Moorehead State University • Goodwater, Alabama
- Will Davis II • F • 6’8 • UC Irvine • Sacramento, CA
- Zach Overwater • G • 6’8 • University of Lethbridge - Didsbury, AB
2019 Draft Picks
- Adika Peter-McNeilly • G • 6’3 • Ryerson University • Scarborough, ON
- Ashton Smith • G • 6’2 • University of Indiana, Penn State University • Scarborough, ON
- Brody Clarke • F • 6’9 • University of Alberta • Toronto, ON
- Christian Musoko • F/C • 6’8 • Southern Utah University • Kinshasa
- Corey Allmond • G • 6’2 • Sam Houston State University • Oxon Hill, MD
- Greg Morrow • G • 6’3 • Western University• London, ON
- Jared Ogungbemi-Jackson • G • 5’8 • University of Calgary • Winnipeg, MB
- Josh Ross • F • 6’4 • Mount Royal University • Burlington, IA
- Mathieu Kamba • G • 6’5 • Central Arkansas University • Calgary, AB
- Renaldo Dixon • F • 6’10 • New Mexico State University • Toronto, ON
Transitioning from the Golden Bears to the Stingers has been a departure from his usual level of preparation, said Craddock, but nothing he hasn’t experienced before.
“It’s night and day (to coaching the Golden Bears),” he mused. “It’s a lot more similar to some of the National teams I’ve worked with. We’ve got this three-month period here that we have to instil our philosophy and our culture, where with a University program you get them for a much longer process. You might get five-or-six weeks to build up to your first game.”
“I mean, we’ve got guys coming in today that will be playing on Friday,” he laughed, “so it’s a whole different world in terms of preparation.”
That preparation will first be put to the test on May 10th as the Stingers host their inaugural home opener against the Niagara River Lions. Tickets are available through the Stingers official website.
Recent Stingers Content:
- CEBL Press Release: CEBL.tv
- Stingers Unveil Inaugural Home and Away Jersey
- Edmonton Stingers Player Profile: Brody Clarke
- Edmonton: You Can Now Buy Edmonton Stingers Single Game Tickets
- CEBL Inaugural Draft – Who Did The Stingers Get?