The Boys Are Back!
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It was exactly what I had expected! The Nike CIA Bounce camp opened up on day one at Sheridan College with a collection of some of Canada’s finest basketball players. The gym was gushing with NCAA prospects, with no exaggeration, at least 30.
BRAMPTON, ON–Some of the nation’s top prospects were fresh off flights or long drives from their respective prep schools in America. Notables among the returnees included, 7’5 Sim Bhullar, 7’3 Tanveer Bhullar, Louisville Commit Negus Webster-Chan and Tyler Ennis, to name a few.
After their rigourous prep school season, the boys are relieved and excited to be back to Canada in prepartion for an exciting summer.
“Tired right now…I miss hanging with the guys, cracking jokes…last summer we had a lot of fun together and I can’t wait until the season start this year,” explained Huntington Prep Centre Sim Bhullar.
“I miss Richy the most, he’s the funniest,” Sim admitted, referring to Oklahoma commit, Richard Peters.
The senior CIA Bounce squad will compete in an ultra competitive EYBL stage, comprised of America’s finest. Be sure to check my previous story here for a breakdown of potentially the best club roster to ever be composed in Canadian basketball history!
To confirm the level of talent on this star-studded roster, Sim Bhullar has this to say, “Everyone on the team is the star player of their school, if one guys doesn’t produce, another guy will come in because we’re stacked from one to twelve.”
However, in this camp, it wasn’t just twelve…the Sheridan College gym was jam-packed with over 50 of Canada’s top prospects from every grade!
Sim’s brother, Tanveer, who is part of the class of 2013 is also excited to be back in action for CIA Bounce, “I always love coming back because when I go down to school, I get kinda home sick and I miss all my friends and teammates. But when I come back, I’m always happy to see them again!”
“I miss by boys Tyler (Ennis) and Tevin (Findlay). I’ve been playing with and against them since the sixth grade, I miss them the most,” said Tanveer.
Yet, there was a sense of curiousity in the beginning as there were new faces accompanied with familiar members.
“The first 10 minutes of the camp, everyone was kind of shy so they didn’t talk that much, but when you get into it, like the last drill I did everyone was yelling and encouraging each other,” explained Tanveer, the younger Bhullar brother.
While all the prospects were huffing, puffing and experiencing muscle cramps throughout the intensive drills, St. Benedict’s Point Guard, Tyler Ennis among other have grown accustomed to the instensity.
“Most of these guys at their new prep schools are used to this becuase they do it on a regualr basis,” Ennis explained.
If there’s one thing that Ennis and the troops can take from the experience thus far, it has to be the comradery and cohesion that is developed
“The chemistry that we’re going to bring for this summer is going to help us play our A-game.”
Fleatcher Meadow’s Shaquille Keith showing NPH some love!
NOTES:
–Negus Webster-Chan has added considerable weight, about 20 pounds of lean muscle and he looked very impressive on day one!
-Oklahoma Commit, Richard Peters was as energetic as he usually is, barking out instruction and intensifying each drill, not that it was needed. He has dropped some weight, but will need to shed more pounds in order to be able to handle the run and gun style that CIA Bounce is accustomed to.
-Andrew Wiggins once again rose to the occasion, distinguishing himself amongst his older peers, including hard work on the glass and some highlight dunks.
-Duane Notice looked good, and comfortable dishing the ball, a facet of his game that stood out to me more than ever, Notice has always been a capable passer, however with such great talent surrounding him, this could be a great opportunity for him to hone his lead guard skills, although a natural scorer.
-Hamilton’s Keith Brown showed flashes of excellence, looking forward to monitoring more of his game.
-Cassidy Ryan worked his tail off in every drill and went all out. Despite posessing a friendly look, Ryan can bang with the best of them.
Stay tuned on NPH for more from the Nike CIA Bounce camp!
