The Saskatchewan Rattlers, member club of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL), today unveiled their official 2020 training camp roster.
The Rattlers Republic can look forward to seeing many familiar faces - as nine members from the 2019 roster are returning to don the Green and Wheat in 2020. Amongst those returning to the Rattlers are CEBL Championship Weekend MVP and Rattlers team captain, Alex Campbell and sharpshooter Negus Webster-Chan. Both players were mainstays on the Rattlers starting five throughout the inaugural CEBL season and their experience and leadership will galvanize a hungry Rattlers team. Campbell finished the 2019 season averaging 15.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists. Webster-Chan played in 15 games during the 2019 season and averaged a career-high 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists. Webster-Chan celebrated his second professional championship with the Rattlers after winning the 2016-17 NBA G League Championship with Raptors 905 - the G League affiliate of the Toronto Raptors.
Fellow 2019 CEBL champions Shane Osayande, Jelane Pryce and Chad Posthumus will be returning to the Rattlers. Osayande returns to the Rattlers after an impressive second half to the CEBL season where he averaged 10 points and 6.1 rebounds. Known for his athleticism and impressive length, the former University of Saskatchewan Huskie is sure to electrify Rattlers fans with his dazzling play. Jelane Pryce returns to the Rattlers for his second season after leading the team in blocks during the 2019 season. Along with being a presence on the court, Pryce was also the Rattlers 2019 community ambassador due to his exemplary work in a multitude of community outreach programs. Also returning for another run at the CEBL Championship is Winnipeg big-man, Chad Posthumus. The center averaged 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds last season and was a menace in the paint on both sides of the court.
Another familiar face will be re-joining the Rattlers after missing out on the championship run in 2019. Fan favourite Tavrion “Awesome” Dawson signed back with the Rattlers after leading the team with 19.6 points, shooting an even 50% from the field in 2019. The 6-foot-9 forward also picked up 6.6 rebounds per game. His impressive play led to being named a CEBL Second Team All-Star despite only playing in 14 games.
Osayande won’t be the only U of S alumni on the team as fellow Huskies Lawrence Moore and Evan Ostertag will also be back with the Rattlers in 2020. Moore spent time on the practice roster in 2019 before playing in 6 games where he averaged 5.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 12.4 minutes. Ostertag, a Saskatoon-native spent the 2019 season on the Rattlers practice roster.
The returning Rattlers will be bolstered by several new faces including Canadian forwards Kenny Ejim, Denzel Taylor and Kai Williams. Ejim comes to the Rattlers after playing in Spain’s LEB Silver where he averaged 14.6 points and 5.4 rebounds. The 6-foot-6 Brampton, ON-native brings great versatility at both ends of the floor. Taylor joins the Rattlers coming off a record year in the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC) where he averaged career-highs in points, minutes and rebounds with 7.5 points, 29.1 minutes and 7.7 rebounds in 23 games for the Moncton Magic. The defensive dynamo won the 2018-19 NBLC Championship and was also named to the NBLC All-Defensive team. Taylor has also represented Canada on the international stage during the 2013 U19 World Cup. Regina, SK-product, Kai Williams will bring a local flair and veteran leadership to the Rattlers. Williams has played professionally since 2010-11 and has a career average of 9.2 points, 4.4. rebounds and 1.2 assists in 256 professional games.
Also joining the Rattlers for their first stint in the CEBL are guards Armoni Brooks, Kemy Osse and Robinson Opong. Brooks, an Austin, TX-native is coming off an impressive season in the NBA G League with the College Park Skyhawks - the NBA G League affiliate of the Atlanta Hawks. In 2019-20 Brooks averaged 10.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game for the Skyhawks in 43 games. Brooks set a career-high 38 points in 45 minutes on Jan. 24 against the Lakeland Magic. Brooks followed up that performance by scoring 32 points four days later against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. The 6-foot-3 guard also played 4 pre-season games with the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. Joining Brooks is Canadian guard Kemy Osse. Osse, a standout member of Team Quebec at the 2009 Canada Games, played 4 years at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where he made history when the 12th ranked Trojans upset the 5th ranked University of Purdue Boilermakers in the first round of the 2016 March Madness tournament. Over a 3-year professional career, Osse has averaged 10.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists. Fellow Quebec player, Robinson Opong will also feature on the Rattlers 2020 training camp roster. Opong - an Uganda national team member - represented Uganda at AfroBasket 2017, leading his team in minutes, points and steals. The 6-foot-3 guard has been playing professionally for the last 5 years, playing in Canada (National Basketball League of Canada), Spain (LEB Gold & LEB Silver) and Africa (African Basketball League & Basketball Africa League). Over the course of his professional career, Opong has averaged 10.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 20.2 minutes per game.
In March, the Rattlers drafted impressive talent in the 2020 U SPORTS draft, including two standout University of Saskatchewan athletes in Chan De Ciman and Alexander Dewar, as well as 2019-20 University of Manitoba Male Athlete of the Year, Rashawn Browne. In four seasons of collegiate basketball, split between New Mexico State University, California University of Pennsylvania and the University of Manitoba, Browne averaged 11.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game over the course of 122 games. Chan De Ciman is set to return to the Rattlers after also being drafted in the 2019 Inaugural CEBL draft. De Ciman served as the team’s designated U SPORTS player for the first portion of the 2019 season before having to sit out the latter part of the season due to injury. Also joining De Ciman is fellow Huskie teammate, Alexander Dewar. Entering his third year with the Huskies Basketball program after graduating from Marion Graham Collegiate in 2018, Dewar has averaged 13.6 points, 2.6 rebounds and 25.6 minutes in 47 games with the Huskies.
“I am very excited to get the roster together for training camp and see them on the court”, said Rattlers GM Barry Rawlyk. “We have worked hard to not only bring back the core of the championship-winning team but also bolster it with new additions that we think will only elevate our level of play in 2020. Not only are we bringing in players that are elite in their talent level, but we are also bringing in young men that are of high character and can contribute not only on the court but also out in the community.”
The Rattlers enter the 2020 season as the defending CEBL Champions
