Wednesday, January 29, 2020 — NIAGARA – The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) announced the opening of the 2020 Free Agency period starting at 12.01 a.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020 .

The Ottawa BlackJacks , CEBL’s newest and seventh franchise, will also participate in free agency to form their inaugural season roster.

“I look forward to seeing the star players that our teams sign starting in just a few weeks. The level of talent is going to be even better than it was in 2019, and I can’t wait to see them in action this May,” said Mike Morreale, Commissioner & CEO of the CEBL.

“The interest level from some of the top Canadian talent in the world has been overwhelming and that means we have done all the right things to make the CEBL a premier choice for some of the best players in the world.”

Below is a breakdown on some of the specifics of the 2020 CEBL Free Agency:

• Free agency officially commences at 12:01 a.m. ET Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020 .
• Free agency officially closes on the final transaction date for all teams at 12 p.m. ET on Monday, July 20, 2020 .
• Players signed to option letters at the end of last season are protected from contact with any other club until 12.01 a.m. ET on Monday, March 2, 2020, and only if not signed by that date.
• Free agent players may have contact with the teams in advance of Feb. 1, 2020, provided no players on any teams’ protected option list are contacted in any way. The full protected list is below:
  • Edmonton Stingers: Jordan Baker, Travis Daniels, Mathieu Kamba, Xavier Moon, Zac Overwater, and Adika Prete-McNeilly.
  • Guelph Nighthawks: Myles Charvis, Tyrell Corbin, Olumuyiwa Famutimi, Michale Kyser, Kimbal Mackenzie, and Connor Wood.
  • Hamilton Honey Badgers: Caleb Agada, Demetrius Denzel-Dyson, and Dele Ogundokun.
  • Niagara River Lions: Ryan Anderson, Trae Bell-Haynes, Alex Johnson, Samuel Muldrow, Guillaume Payen-Boucard, and Dorian Pinson.
  • Saskatchewan Rattlers: Lawrence Moore.

• Starting Feb. 1 up until the league wide training camp cutdown date of April 21, all CEBL teams are allowed a maximum of 23 contracts at any given time.
• On April 21, all teams will cut down to the training camp roster maximum of 16 players plus a list of signed players that will be joining their respective teams at the conclusion of their international teams schedule.
• All teams will cut down to their final rosters of 14 players just prior to a team's first regular season game.
• New for this season is that teams must have 1 U SPORTS player in one of two categories:
• U SPORTS Developmental player returning with eligibility or ,
  
• a U SPORTS current year graduate non-returning.

A 3-round U SPORTS draft will be revealed on March 19 through all CEBL digital channels.

Beginning this season, CBC Sports will offer live streams of all 75 regular season CEBL games including five playoff contests. CBC will also provide broadcast coverage of seven regular season games and the CEBL Championship Final in Edmonton, home to the Edmonton Stingers. All games are available for free via CEBL.TV, CBC Gem App, CBCsports.ca, Island TV Network, and other local broadcast partners to be named in the near future.

Basketball fans throughout the country can get a jump start on the action by purchasing season tickets including Championship Weekend tickets in all of the seven CEBL markets via cebl.ca/tickets.

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Media Contact:

Ansh Sanyal, Director, Brand & Marketing, Canadian Elite Basketball League

[email protected] / 416-579-098

The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) is a new basketball experience that features world-class professional basketball in a fan-friendly entertainment environment across seven cities in Canada. The 2019 inaugural season saw more than 100 Canadian and international players take to the court, culminating with the Saskatchewan Rattlers earning the first CEBL championship trophy. CEBL players come from NBA G-League clubs, top NCAA programs, the Canadian national program, U SPORTS and other Division 1 FIBA leagues. As the First Division Professional League partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL is set to start its second season in May 2020. All games are live streamed on the CBC Gem app, CEBL.TV and the Island Sports Network. Head to cebl.ca or follow us on Twitter , Instagram , and Facebook to learn more.