Talks on to bring Canadian Elite Basketball League to city

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This article was published 18/01/2022 (1354 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Pro basketball in Winnipeg anyone?

Canadian Elite Basketball League commissioner Mike Morreale said Tuesday he expects his 10-team league to expand to the Manitoba capital by 2024, adding he has engaged in talks with three potential local ownership groups — including 50 Below Sports + Entertainment, owners of the WHL’s Winnipeg Ice.

The main hurdle to overcome is finding a mid-sized arena to house the franchise. Currently, a suitable building does not exist, although 50 Below owners Greg Fettes and Matt Cockell have not revealed updated plans for an arena once targeted for a site north of McGillivray Boulevard.

Morreale said a CEBL franchise, playing from the third week of May until mid-August, would be a good complement to any new facility built to house the Ice.

“We would prefer a mid-sized arena,” said Morreale. “Not to say where the Jets play (Canada Life Centre) wouldn’t be adequate but then again, it’s a bigger venue. You’d have to scale it properly. You want to create the intimacy and the mid-sized — 5,000- to 8,000-seat venues — are the ones that just have the better fan experience.”

Expansion teams in St. John’s, N.L., Scarborough, Ont., and Montreal will begin play in the CEBL this spring. The Newfoundland Growlers, unable to secure a suitable lease at Mile One Centre, will use Memorial University’s Fieldhouse until a more permanent home can be found.

A similar arrangement could be a temporary fix in Winnipeg.

“We’re going to take our time in Winnipeg, but we believe and I believe it’s a great basketball market,” said Morreale. “It’s got a large Filipino contingent, which just love and adore basketball and we believe it can work. Truthfully, the venue’s probably the biggest stumbling block at this particular time but knowing that something will get off the ground (eventually), we would look at a similar situation to what we’ve done in Newfoundland to get that started.”

Former University of Manitoba guard Rashawn Browne, who played the 2020 season with the CEBL’s Saskatchewan Rattlers before focusing on a career as a consultant at IG Wealth in Winnipeg, was enthusiastic about a team in his hometown.

“I’d love to see it,” said Browne. “I think that’s what starts progress when it comes to developing a sport in the city. You can look no further than the Toronto Raptors. When the Raptors came, there was a culture built around them. Obviously hockey is the main sport in Canada , but you see in bigger cities like Toronto, once they get the team and kids can see what’s possible beyond high school, beyond college, it builds up a culture.

“I’m kind of biased here — I’d love to see the basketball culture build up a little bit.”

“I’m kind of biased here– I’d love to see the basketball culture build up a little bit.” – Rashawn Browne

The CEBL puts an emphasis on Canadian content. Only three Americans are permitted on each 14-man roster, with a minimum of six homegrown players, one international player per team and one U Sports player. Another attractive feature for potential franchise owners is an $8,000 per game salary cap for each team.

Eight of the current clubs are owned by co-founder Richard Petko, while Newfoundland and Scarborough have separate ownership.

“From this point on we’re looking to find external owners for new teams — expansion teams — but also find them for some of our existing teams,” said Morreale. “We are in mid- to late-stage talks with some new ownership groups to take over some of our existing teams. And that was always the concept.”

Recently, the three-year-old loop has been gaining traction as a development league for NBA talent. Forward Xavier Sneed (Memphis Grizzlies), Niagara’s Javin DeLaurier (Milwaukee Bucks), Guelph’s Cat Barber (Atlanta Hawks) and Edmonton’s Xavier Moon (Los Angeles Clippers) have all signed 10-day NBA contracts.

More recently, Milwaukee Bucks signed Lindell Wigginton to a two-way contract, making the Hamilton guard the first player to sign a standard NBA contract after playing in the CEBL. The 6-1 product of Dartmouth, N.S., averaged 21.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 2021.

Browne said the calibre of play in the CEBL is excellent.

“It was kind of like instant resume,” said Browne. “They kind of have to pick a U Sports guy for every team. I played pretty well but I had other plans for my life. If you can take advantage of it, it definitely gives you a leg up on where you would have been if you hadn’t played in the league, right? It’s a good stepping stone.”

mike.sawatzky@winnipegfreepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14