How The CEBL Has Become A Hot Pro Destination For NCAA D1 Canadian Talent

Thousands of people watch as Duane Notice’s name is announced. His family cheers from the background, filled with pride and excitement. For Notice, as the starting point guard on the University of South Carolina’s basketball team, this feeling was nothing new. Except, he didn’t have a basketball in his hand, rather, he had a diploma.

Despite four years at South Carolina where he accomplished countless achievements, including leading his team to a magical Final Four run in his senior season, the moment that Notice will always remember is his graduation.

“It was pretty special,” said Notice, a guard for the Hamilton Honey Badgers, “Being one of the first people in my family to graduate from university and have basketball being one of those things that helped me achieve that goal was amazing.”

In the CEBL, many other players have taken the same path as Notice, playing their university basketball at a Division 1 school in the United States at the NCAA level. Playing in front of large crowds with major exposure, along with the opportunity to play in March Madness are some of the many benefits of Canadians taking their talents down south.

“Where the CEBL has 80% of their team filled with Canadians, in other leagues, the jobs were fewer. So having the CEBL back then would have helped me a lot.” – Jamal Reynolds, Guelph Nighthawks

For Guelph Nighthawks forward Jamal Reynolds, he used a lot of the lessons gained during his two years at Canisius College in Buffalo when getting an opportunity in the CEBL. Going through film study, hard practices and days of preparation all helped him when he got his pro career started. As a Canadian looking to make a name for himself, he tried to capture his experience in the U.S as well as he could.

“It was a big moment for all of us, especially Canadians to move up from high school into that higher level,” said Reynolds, “It prepares you for the professional level more than anywhere else.”

As much as the NCAA game was a benefit to Reynolds, the journey afterwards was not as easy. Just like so many athletes looking to transfer over to the professional game, opportunities were few and far between. When Reynolds graduated from college in 2016, there was no CEBL to jumpstart his career.

“I think it would have been huge for me especially because it was very hard to get your name out and find a job as a Canadian,” said Reynolds, “Where the CEBL has 80% of their team filled with Canadians, in other leagues, the jobs were fewer. So having the CEBL back then would have helped me a lot.”

“For me to play in Canada before it’s all said and done, before the next generation comes, it’s huge,” said Cadougan, “It shows how much basketball has grown.”

The same can be said for Fraser Valley Bandits guard Junior Cadougan. A veteran in the Canadian basketball landscape, Cadougan has played for seven teams in five countries over the course of his career after graduating from Marquette University in Milwaukee. It was there where he was a senior leader for future NBA players Jimmy Butler and Jae Crowder. While playing in countless big games in college, Cadougan felt a loyalty to play with his country on his mind.

“It was huge for me. I left Toronto very early to go play in the U.S, so I had Toronto and Canada on my back the whole way. I had to put in the work for people back home,” said Cadougan, “Back then, there was a lot of pressure for me to hold it down for Canada, because there weren’t a lot of guys like me doing it in the States yet, so I had to make a lot of noise.”

It was that pride and determination that took Cadougan around the globe throughout a successful basketball career. Now one of the veterans in the CEBL, he can appreciate the value that the league provides for so many up-and-coming basketball players from Canada.

“For me to play in Canada before it’s all said and done, before the next generation comes, it’s huge,” said Cadougan, “It shows how much basketball has grown.”

One of those players in the next generation is Honey Badgers big man Kalif Young. Graduating from Providence College in the spring of 2020, Young had locked up a contract in the fall to travel across the globe and play in Turkey. However, knowing he still had the summer free, he decided to pivot slightly and take a deal in the CEBL before heading out to Europe. For him, it was a decision that helped his professional basketball career tip-off the right way - from his very own home country.

“The CEBL gave me a good bridge where I could really develop and learn from the experience of all the veterans around me. I picked their brains on a daily, learning from what they knew,” said Young, “The more I went through the tournament, the better things got and the more comfortable I felt transitioning from a college player to a pro.”

I love my experience in Turkey but it’s nothing like being at home. When you have the opportunity to play at home, do your thing, and garner attention, why wouldn’t you take it?” – Kalif Young, Hamilton Honey Badgers

Learning from some of the best players in Canada is one of the many selling points the CEBL offers to graduates from the NCAA, such as Young. Another major factor is the fact that these athletes, who have spent at least four years away from their home country, have a chance to play near family and friends. It was this reasoning that made the decision to play in the CEBL a no-brainer for Young.

“It’s an amazing opportunity. It gives you the chance to step into a pro experience but in your own country. That’s something you just can’t pass up,” said Young, “For me, I love my experience in Turkey but it’s nothing like being at home. When you have the opportunity to play at home, do your thing, and garner attention, why wouldn’t you take it?”

Not only did Young have the opportunity to grow his career, but he had the chance to do so in the community that is Canadian basketball. For these players, coaches and staff members, it doesn’t matter what background you’re from or which path you’ve taken. It is simply a group effort.

“One thing about Canada basketball, is it’s always been a tight knit community and family. So when you have the chance to be in one melting pot in the league, it’s great,” said Young, “What was amazing for me was that I saw guys that I looked up to when I was growing up. I saw guys that went down the same type of path as me. Just seeing guys like Junior Cadougan, watching him go through that process. And to have those conversations and those battles against each other, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

Cadougan takes his role as a mentor to players like Young seriously. He knows the talent level that Canadian players coming from the NCAA just like he did, possess. That’s why whenever he has the chance, he shows off the talent from his home country.

“I remember being at camps in the U.S, and I’m showing guys that we have a lot of good ballers, it’s just they don’t have the opportunities you guys have, but you’ll see,” said Cadougan, “Now look. Everybody’s playing professionally now. There’s no ceiling once this grows, because a lot of Canadians won’t even want to go overseas if this league grows the way it is now. It’s going to be great.”

It is exactly this reason why Duane Notice, one of the highest profile players in the CEBL, is looking to take part in the league. Spending his college years south of the border, then travelling around the world to begin his professional career, he was unable to truly represent his country that he grew up in.

Now, for countless Canadians who left their country to pursue an education and a basketball scholarship in the U.S are back home. Notice, Reynolds, Cadougan and Young are just a few examples of that. As Notice explains, their journey to the CEBL represents something much bigger than themselves.

“It’s a representation of our country. You have players that come from different schools, whether it’s mid-major, high-major, small time, big time, and they’re all able to come in the league and contribute. It’s a testament to just how skilled we are as a country when it comes to basketball,” said Notice, “So to be a part of all that diversity, and then put it into one pot, is one of the smartest things you can do."

The CEBL is preparing for its third season in 2021 following the success of this past year's CEBL Summer Series in St. Catharines, Ont., which saw millions of viewers across Canada and around the world tune in starting July 25 to watch 26 games played over 15 days in a single-site league competition. The CEBL became the first professional sports league in Canada to return to play after the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in mid-March shut down sports across the country.



A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 80 percent of its current rosters being Canadians. Players come from the NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League Partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season typically runs from May through August.