Ten months after Canada’s national men’s basketball team last took to the court in FIBA AmeriCup qualifying action, they’re set to do it all over again next week.
This time, however, it will feature a foray into Saskatchewan for the first time with SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon set to host a pair of games for Team Canada.
Picking up a pair of victories against Nicaragua in the first qualifying window back in February, Team Canada will hit the court looking to pick up a few more wins with the goal of qualifying for the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup which will be hosted by Nicaragua next August.
Canada is aiming to be one of the dozen top countries from North, Central and South America and continue their rise on the international basketball scene.
Buzz around the team has only increased since Canada qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympic men’s basketball tournament for the first time in decades this past summer.
“Our program has come from number 18 in the world in 2021 to number five,” said Barrett. “In this last Olympic cycle we’ve beat the number one, two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight teams in the world. Our players believe we can win on any basketball floor, against anyone.”
Canada finished with a perfect 3-0 record in the round-robin in Paris, but fell to the host French 82-73 to see an early exit from the tournament in the quarter-finals.
Barrett, however, is convinced their four games of action will greatly benefit the program down the road.
“I think experience is a big thing,” said Barrett. “RJ, my son, was in diapers the last time we were in the Olympic Games. There weren’t any of our players on our team with any Olympic experience, this was our first experience and I think we acquainted ourselves pretty decently through the tournament. Obviously, we came up short against France.”
Canada’s roster in Saskatoon will look significantly different, however, with stars like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jamal Murray, RJ Barrett and Dillon Brooks all in the midst of their NBA seasons.
Instead, Nathaniel Mitchell will serve as head coach with a 15-man roster formed out of the top Canadian athletes outside of the NBA.
“We have some players who are doing some tremendous things in Europe as well as in the NBA G League,” said Barrett. “Being able to pull those guys together will be really, really good. There should be excitement there with a high level of play; at least one of our players have been on an NBA roster before.
“Hopefully what everybody will get to see in Saskatchewan is just because you’re not in the NBA doesn’t mean you’re not a high, high-level player.”
Canada Basketball has partnered with the CEBL and the Saskatchewan Rattlers to put on the two qualifiers, with an emphasis being placed on the impacts young basketball fans will garner from seeing international basketball played in Saskatchewan.
“There’s just so many different ways that the CEBL is impacting,” said Barrett. “I do think in some ways in a very direct way it filters down as they do programming directly to the youth ages. In many cases it’s also indirect, with the people that are in the CEBL that are going back into their own environment that are also still going down into the community.”
Team Canada’s first game at SaskTel Centre will take place on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 7:10 p.m. against the Dominican Republic, which will be followed up on Sunday, Nov. 24 at 2:10 p.m. versus Mexico.