Hometown hoopster ponders joining Sea Bears

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This article was published 02/04/2024 (525 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson is one of the most successful basketball players to ever come out of Winnipeg.

His nine years of pro ball have included stops in Portugal, Spain, France, Finland and Denmark. His most recent stop in Belarus might be his best yet.

Playing for BC Tsmoki-Minsk of the VTB United League — which is made up of mostly Russian clubs — the 32-year-old point guard averaged a career-high 18.9 points per game through 33 contests to rank third among all scorers.

“I never thought I’d be on that side of the world, but that’s what the opportunity presented and it made sense to do it,” Ogungbemi-Jackson said recently.

“As far as the basketball goes, it’s definitely the best competition I’ve ever played against. Outside of the NBA, this is a legit, top three or five league in Europe. You got teams that are EuroLeague level (the top tier of European basketball), you got guys that are making a million dollars in this league, and you’re playing against ex-NBA guys all the time.”

Despite his personal success, Ogungbemi-Jackson asked to have his contract terminated last week with seven regular season games remaining. With Tsmoki-Minsk out of the playoff picture, the former University of Calgary star was itching to get home to his wife Ketsia, whom he met in France, and their six-month old daughter Kamari.

He had several offers from other clubs on the table, including one from a team in Turkey, but Ogungbemi-Jackson opted to return to Winnipeg.

“At that point, I felt I might as well take the advantage to come home and be with my family. And certain things were happening in Russia in the past week or two that were making me a little eerie as well,” said Ogungbemi-Jackson, who plans to play a few more years.

“This is my ninth season, and for eight years, I’ve played start to finish and never left so it’s kind of foreign for me to be here in Winnipeg in March. I haven’t been here in March since COVID, and prior to that, it was back in high school, so we’re talking like 15 years. It’s new, but I’m enjoying it.”

So, what’s next? Are the stars aligning for the hometown product to play with the Winnipeg Sea Bears this summer?

Winnipeg’s CEBL franchise hasn’t been shy about their interest in Ogungbemi-Jackson. Head coach/general manager Mike Taylor offered him a deal last summer to join the team late when his season in France ended, but the timing just didn’t work out.

Ogungbemi-Jackson was drafted by the Edmonton Stingers in the CEBL’s inaugural entry draft back in 2019 but has never played in the league due to his commitments overseas and needing some rest time after playing around 10 months of the year.

European seasons can run into June, and the CEBL starts in late May and runs through Aug. 9-11 for their championship weekend. Things are complicated as Ogungbemi-Jackson typically leaves town for training camp in the first or second week of August. Depending on the situation, some teams would be OK with a player arriving late.

“Never say never… Last season, myself and Mike Taylor were in constant communication throughout the whole year, and this season as well for obvious reasons,” said Ogungbemi-Jackson.

“Right now, it’s something that’s on my mind and it’s something that could happen. It’s another reason for me being here a little earlier than normal and it gives me the time to take care of my body and mentally prepare if I do decide to play for the team… And I think this year, it’s only going to be bigger with the success that they had last year. So, if I can add to that, and it makes sense for my family and the team, we’ll make it happen.”

Ogungbemi-Jackson, who would arguably be the top Canadian on the Winnipeg roster, expects to make a decision soon.

He had some family make the trip out to Portugal when he was first starting his pro journey, but since then, Ogungbemi-Jackson has had to get used to playing in front of crowds of strangers in a different continent.

Thanks to the Sea Bears, that could change.

“I’ve talked about it with family and close friends and stuff, like I couldn’t even put a price on that. It wouldn’t even be about money,” he said. “If I had a chance to play for my hometown, it’s literally priceless and it would just be about the love of the game and about my family and friends.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

X: @TaylorAllen31