Sea Bears sign ex-Shooting Star Muenkat

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This article was published 07/03/2024 (937 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Sea Bears added some championship pedigree Thursday.

David Muenkat, a 6-7 forward from Brampton, Ont., signed with the Canadian Elite Basketball League team for the 2024 season.

Muenkat helped the Scarborough Shooting Stars win a CEBL title in 2023. He averaged 7.2 points and 5.8 rebounds while playing just over 17 minutes per game.

Coming to Winnipeg will mean a reunion of sorts for Muenkat and 2023 league MVP Teddy Allen, who re-signed with Winnipeg last month. The two were teammates in Scarborough in 2022.

“The crazy thing about Teddy is we actually played each other in junior college, way back in 2018-19,” said Muenkat via telephone from Frankfurt where he’s currently playing for the Fraport Skyliners of the German Pro A League. “I played at Trinidad (Colo.) State and he played at Western Nebraska. We played three times… When I saw him in Scarborough I thought, ‘There’s no way — what are the odds that I run into this guy again?’”

Muenkat is currently averaging more than 10 points and six rebounds per game with the Skyliners.

“I knew that they really connected and liked each other a lot during the Scarborough time but I didn’t know it went even beyond that,” said Sea Bears GM and head coach Mike Taylor. “Teddy was really in David’s corner, supporting him and saying, ‘Coach, if we get something where he can fit, it’d be great.’ And fortunately things worked out.”

Muenkat, the CEBL’s first-overall draft pick in 2022, put the wraps on a four-year U Sports career with the St. Francis Xavier X-Men in 2023 by being honoured as the country’s defensive player of the year while also being named a first-team all-star in Atlantic Universities Sports.

The 23-year-old is the fourth Canadian signed by the club for 2024. Forward Chad Posthumus and guards Alex Campbell and Mason Bourcier were already under contract.

“Scarborough is a great spot,” said Muenkat. “They took a chance on me, drafted me twice and I learned a lot being in that organization. I’ve got a lot of love for them. But at the same time, I think you’ve got to get out of your comfort zone sometimes and get your feet wet and see what else is out there.”

Muenkat is looking forward to playing with the Sea Bears but his arrival in Winnipeg could be delayed slightly if the Skyliners go on an extended playoff run.

“I’ve gotten to know Mike (Taylor) since he reached out to me about playing for Winnipeg and I’ve heard nothing but good things about him,” said Muenkat. “And from my experience playing against him, all the teams that he’s coached always seem to have kind of a positive kind of aura to them.”

Taylor said Muenkat’s prowess as a defensive stopper with some spectacular offensive abilities should make him a good fit.

“We’ve identified David as a really good two-way player,” said Taylor. “We haven’t had a player like him with his athleticism, the ability to play above the rim and his versatility to play a power forward and a small forward.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca