CEBL’s championship weekend caps another successful season

Mike Morreale said that many people believed he was crazy after he was appointed chief executive officer and commissioner of the fledgling Canadian Elite Basketball League in 2004.

He can’t even imagine Canada’s basketball scene without it.

“I was talking to one my staff members last night and said, “Can’t you imagine if CEBL stopped being existing?” “Imagine the vacuum that would be created.” said Morreale, a former longtime CFL receiver.

Morreale, as she heads into the league’s championship weekend which begins Friday in Ottawa, reflected on the league’s progress.

“We employ about 500 people because of what we have done in the past four years. . . He praised the team, coaches, players, and everyone.” said.

Morreale said he hosted breakfast Wednesday morning with coaches and general managers from across the league — including retired players Joel Anthony and Brady Heslip, who are GMs in Montreal and Scarborough, respectively. It was a fantastic example of the league’s connection with Canadian basketball alumni.

He described it as “just being able to listen to their experiences, what they like, and any recommendations they may have or just to share our stories.” said. “It’s amazing to observe the dynamic off of the court. It’s all just about building the culture.

League expansion

This past season saw the addition of three new teams in the Montreal Alliance, the Scarborough Shooting Stars and the Newfoundland Growlers — bringing its total to 10.

He said It was a leap of faith to be able to grow the league by three teams, in a league that had seven teams. It’s his highlight season.

“You can kind of throw the dice a bit because it’s a leapof faith but it’s amazing, the flavour that has been added from having 10 team coast to coast. The ability for these guys. travel Fans can experience different teams across the country. The talent level is incredible.

It felt like an entirely different league this year. We’re coast-to-coast, have 10 teams and we’re firmly established. What do we want to do? Where are we going?

Morreale indicated that more expansion news could be coming in the weeks ahead.

Scarborough’s success story

Morreale said Montreal’s average attendance of around 90 percent was another highlight of the season. The success story of Scarborough reaching the final four is another highlight.

“It speaks to how they approach the game and operate a team. They’re our first external.” [ownership] Morreale: group said. “So, even though you don’t really know what you are doing, you build it one-way and then you pass the torch to the group and hope they do great things. They did that and more.

Jalen, a former Raptors guard, led Scarborough to victory weekend with a 108-96% win over Saskatchewan. In the semifinals, the Shooting Stars (12-8) will face the Niagara River Lions (13-6). Friday’s other semifinal of the all-Ontario final 4 will feature the Hamilton Honey Badgers (12-8) against the Niagara River Lions (13-07).

“It’s the icing on top of the cake.” [the Shooting Stars] Morreale said that he was also excited to be there from a basketball standpoint. He suggested that players play well and then allow the guys to experience championships weekend. said. “Once you have experienced it, you will want to go back every year.”

Another CEBL highlight was participating in the FIBA Basketball Champions League of Americas. The Edmonton Stingers won last year’s CEBL title and were able to play in the Champions League. However, they didn’t make it past the first round. Canadian will be represented by the winner of this weekend’s final in Champions League action 2022-23.

The competition saw 12 teams representing seven different countries compete in the past season.

Championship weekend will be hosted by TD Place with the final slated on Sunday. Morreale expects a decent crowd as the BlackJacks averaged around 2,000 fans in regular season and saw a season record of over 4,000.

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