ECBL searching for players

Combine set for June 11 and 12 in Bible Hill

jason.malloy @saltwire.com

@JasonMa47772994

People interested in playing professional basketball in the Maritimes will have an opportunity to showcase their skills next month.

The Eastern Canadian Basketball League (ECBL) is holding a combine June 11 and 12 at the Langille Athletic Centre on the Dal Agricultural Campus in Bible Hill. It is also hosting a two-day combine in Los Angeles on July 11 and 12.

“I don’t think people understand there’s a Maritime rule in the league,” president Tim Kendrick said. “Two of the five Canadians must be Maritime born or played their college or university basketball in the Maritimes.”

He is urging anyone interested to sign up by registering online at ecbl.ca and try to earn a spot on one of the six teams for the league’s first season in 2023. He said it could be a springboard to more opportunities.

“Once you have a pro job, you become a lot more attractive to all of these other leagues around the world.”

The league has two teams in each Maritime province (Truro Tide and Valley Vipers in Nova Scotia, the Saint John Union and Bathurst Bears in New Brunswick, as well as the Summerside Slam and Charlottetown Power in Prince Edward Island). The Vipers will play at the Kings Mutual Century Centre in Berwick.

The Power recently announced its coaching staff during a community celebration, and a similar celebration is expected for the Vipers in June or July.

The league was planning to start in 2022 with its season running from March to June but COVID-19 restrictions left organizers with no alternative than to push the first season back a year. The league needs fans in the stands and didn’t want to be in a position where it started its first year and had to shut things down because of the pandemic.

Kendrick, a Wolfville native, said he thinks back to guys who played at universities throughout the Maritimes years ago and never had the pro opportunities today’s players have.

“When they were done in university, their careers were over,” he said.