The Ottawa BlackJacks of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) announced Monday its official training camp roster in preparation for the 2022 CEBL season.

Led by General Manager and Vice-President of Basketball Operations, Jevohn Shepherd and Head Coach, Charles Dubé-Brais, Ottawa’s current training camp roster is comprised of 14 players, with additional players joining the team at the conclusion of their current international season.

Highlights of the roster include two players with NBA experience (Deng Adel, Walt Lemon Jr.), four returning BlackJacks players (Chad Posthumus, Guillaume Pépin, Ryan Wright and Tyrell Green), three American imports (Jared Wilson-Frame, Walt Lemon Jr., Zena Edosomwan), one Non-American international import (Deng Adel) and four U SPORTS players (Aiden Warnholtz, Guillaume Pépin, Nervens Demosthene and Maxime Boursiquot).

Entering their third CEBL season and first full campaign with fans in attendance at the Arena at TD Place, the BlackJacks have re-signed four 2021 BlackJacks players, including Tyrell Green, U SPORTS draftee Guillaume Pépin, Chad Posthumus, and Ryan Wright. Posthumus and Pépin are yet to play at the Arena at TD Place, as they joined the team in August 2021 for the CEBL quarter-final at Hamilton, leading to the CEBL Championship Weekend in Edmonton.

Ottawa had the oldest team in the league last season. This year’s roster averages 26 years-old and counts four players with five or more years of professional basketball experience, including Wright (12), Lemon Jr. (8), Posthumus (7), and Green (5). BlackJacks players have experience playing in top professional leagues in seven different countries around the world, including in the NBA, NBA G League, CEBL, NBL Australia, EuroLeague, and more.

The BlackJacks training camp roster is comprised of 11 NCAA Division I alumni, including two Harvard University graduate students (Corey Jonhson, Zena Edosomwan) and four U SPORTS players, including BlackJacks 2022 CEBL U SPORTS draft picks, Quebecers Nervens Demonsthene and Guillaume Pépin, U SPORTS Developmental Player Warnholtz and U SPORTS Current Year Graduate Boursiquot.

Three players have ties to the nation’s capital; Ottawa-natives Johnson and Boursiquot, and a three-year veteran for the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees, Pépin.

For full training camp roster visit: https://bit.ly/3MmQrHq

Training Camp is set to start with Media Day scheduled from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. today, Monday May 16, 2022, at Collège La Cité. For training sessions, accredited media will have access to the court for the final 20 minutes of each practice. Members of the media who are seeking accreditation for BlackJacks Media Day, training sessions and home games are invited to apply through the BlackJacks portal: https://www.theblackjacks.ca/media-accreditation . The BlackJacks will be responsible for the review process and delivery of the accreditation decisions.

Further information will be sent to media once accreditation is approved.

The BlackJacks 20-game regular season will tip off with a game at home versus Fraser Valley on May 25, 2022, at 7:30pm. In addition to 10 regular season home games, the BlackJacks will be hosting the 2022 CEBL Championship Weekend from August 12-14, 2022. Season and half season seat memberships, Flex Packs, group tickets and single game tickets are available at theblackjacks.ca/tickets . For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact the Ottawa BlackJacks Membership Services team directly at 613-690-0519 or by email at [email protected] .

Quotes:

“We are excited to get going. Our goal in assembling this group was to have versatility, athleticism, talent, and youth. More importantly, we have stand up characters that want to win a championship for our community.”

- Jevohn Shepherd, General Manager and Vice-President, Basketball Operations

Ottawa BlackJacks Basketball Club