A Hoops Journey

Episode 113!! We hope you are all soaking up the last days of summer! This is one for the ages. Jamie is a young man who has worked hard and now finds himself as an assistant with TCU men's basketball. Jamie’s story goes back to growing up in Toronto and playing lots of hoops, however not realizing what it took to go play Division 1 made for an interesting path. A wild story about Hurricane Katrin...

For Ep 112 we sit down with the current @nba Basketball Operations Manager for Europe and the Middle East, Emmy Unaegbu. From Vancouver to Port Coquitlam, to SFU and beyond Emmy unpacks his life and journey on how he made it to his current destination; Abu Dhabi. Emmy’s story is a great one, a hard-working and consistent basketball player who excelled at many levels and has used those skills to tr...

Michael Grange is a renowned sports columnist, radio personality, and television commentator associated with Rogers Sportsnet. With a vast knowledge of sports and a keen analytical mind, Grange has made significant contributions to the world of sports journalism. Grange's journey in sports began at an early age, fueled by his passion for athletics. Growing up, he developed a deep appreciation for...

Know the name? If not then tap in and think of Team Canada, University of Virginia, Iowa State and all the way to the Philadelphia 76ers. Marial has years ahead of him and after a positive season with the Maine Celtics, he looks forward to signing somewhere soon. Marial takes us back to his time growing up in Ottawa being surrounded by four siblings (two who were serious hoopers), and his father w...

Dani Langford’s story to the @warriors is amazing. The current manager of player rehabilitation and 2022 NBA Champion goes into deep detail about the importance of relationships and mentors, citing both Alex McKechnie and Rick Celibrini as driving forces to her success. As a player, Dani won Provincial and National Championships, including TWO undefeated seasons with the SFU Women’s program under...

Episode 108 - Diego Maffia For episode 108 we have a very special guest Diego Maffia! 2023 Canada West Player of the Year, dropped 96 points in a high school game and was recently selected 6th overall by the Vancouver Bandits. Diego comes on the podcast to talk about growing up in Brazil and moving to Vancouver Island in 2015, the power of community and the importance of giving back, finding his f...

“Everyone is going through something that we can’t see.” - @kevinlove Kevin Love has been very open about his personal struggles after a public moment years ago. Since that time it’s been Kevin’s mission to help change people’s perspective on mental health. Mitch sits down with Ellie and Sara from the @kevinlovefund to talk about an important program for school teachers, and how we can support the...

Back like we never left! Episode 106 has us connecting with current McMaster head coach Patrick Tatham. “PT” and Mitch go back in time to discuss a variety of things; from some poor decision-making as a young person that led to a unique opportunity involving basketball, and why a small D1 school was the right choice. Patrick’s coaching journey has been a unique one as well, from assistant coaching...

In Episode 105, we catch up with Marek Klassen, a former BC superstar and current French professional athlete. Marek takes us back to his childhood days where he grew up under the guidance of his father, Dave, who was heavily involved in coaching Athletes In Action. From an early age, Marek was surrounded by professionals and witnessed the dedication required to excel in sports. During the episode...

Welcome to Episode 104 of A Hoops Journey, where we have the pleasure of hosting Alan Tait, considered one of the greatest BC high school basketball players of all time. Alan takes us through his remarkable journey, sharing his experiences playing for the dominant Richmond Colts and achieving success in high school. He also shares his experience of being one of the first Canadians to play Division...

Jack is a multifaceted creative professional based in Los Angeles. He has a wide range of skills including writing, directing, photography, strategy, consulting, and creating, and is a regular consumer of acai bowls. Originally from Denver, Jack began his career as a sportswriter and has since contributed to SLAM magazine. He spent three months in Barcelona following LaLiga, was a former 30 Under...

A Hoops Journey returns with a highly anticipated podcast after a brief hiatus. For episode 102, we have the privilege of interviewing one of Canada's most distinguished basketball families, the Scrubb family. Lloyd Scrubb, played for Richmond High and won two national titles in 1984 and 1985 at Uvic under the legendary Ken Shields. After coaching at the U Sports level, Lloyd remained involved in...

For Episode 101 of A Hoops Journey, we have current SFU Women's Assistant Coach Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe! The Toronto-born BC native joins us to chat about her journey from Ontario, to UBC, back to Ontario, then to Vernon and up Burnaby Mountain at SFU! She details her path through the Canada Women's National Team, playing in Switzerland, what it felt like to represent Canada at the Olympics and the F...

Episode 100 in the books folks! Thank you to everyone who has been a part of our journey to this point. For this episode, we have former Gonzaga Bulldog and currently playing for Olimipa Milano of the LBA: Kevin Pangos. The 2015 WCC player of the year and 4x First-team All-WCC team member sits down with us from Lithuania (RIP WIFI) to chat about his own hoops journey starting in Ontario and findin...

We have former UBC Thunderbird, longtime friend of the podcast and currently playing professional basketball for South China Athletic Association in Hong Kong, Nate Yu. The former 2012 Canada West 1st-team All-Star who captained Team Canada to a silver medal in the 2011 FISU Games in Shenzhen, China joins us early in his morning to chat about his upbringing in Prince George, how Episode 8 guest (b...

The current COO of SLAM Magazine Aron Phillips joins us for Episode 98 of A Hoops Journey - and what a journey that is. The Boston-born Vermont native sits down with us to chat about his wild foray into the sport of basketball and how his efforts took him down a road that's nothing we've seen on this podcast. From being a practice player for the Lewis and Clark College Women's Basketball team, int...

Frequently name-dropped on the podcast, we got a chance to chat with an OG of Canada Basketball - Jermaine Anderson joins us for Episode 97. The Toronto-born former Fordham University Rams player and pro player overseas was a mainstay on the senior men's national team, representing Canada over 75 times across his career. He sits down with us to chop it up about his basketball upbringing, his natio...

We have current Raptors Assistant Nathaniel Mitchell joining us on the podcast for Episode 96! He has just served most recently as the Canada Senior Men's Basketball Head Coach at the GLOBL Jam, but is known throughout the Canadian basketball community. Mitchell also served as an assistant coach on Nick Nurse’s senior men’s team staff for the FIBA Basketball World Cup and the FIBA Olympic Qualifyi...

Welcome back to A Hoops Journey! We have a returning guest: former Lakehead University, Maine Red Claws and Perth Wildcats Head Coach, former Boston Celtics assistant and CURRENTLY the Salt Lake City Stars Head Coach - Scott Morrison. We chat with Scott about his WILD journey since his episode aired, the struggles and challenges he faced, and some advice for young coaches. We then end the episode...

Welcome back to Episode 94 of A Hoops Journey! We chat with Montreal-raised, former Niagara University Purple Eagles player, former Canadian National Team player and professional player throughout Europe and Asia; Juan Mendez. The highest scoring Canadian in NCAA Division 1 history and inducted in 2014 into the MAAC Naismith Hall of Fame (1st Canadian), we talk to him about his journey. His story...

Welcome back for Episode 93! Today we have longtime and current SFU Women's Basketball Head Coach Bruce Langford joining us on the podcast. Bruce Langford has been a fixture in the British Columbia basketball community for 30 years, having coached 21 years in the B.C. school system. He coached his teams to three provincial championships and one Reebok Canadian National High School Championship. Hi...

Happy Canada Day to our Canadian listeners! We have a great episode for you today; former Miami Heat center, two-time NBA champ, former Canadian National Team player and currently the General manager of the Montreal Alliance of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL): Joel Anthony. The Montreal-native talks about his long-winded journey to the NBA, from Dawson College, to Florida, to playing w...

Current professional player for Chorale Roanne Basket in France's top tier and former Ottawa Gee-Gee's player Johnny Berhanemeskel joins us for Episode 91. The man known to some of us as "Johnny Buckets", he sits down with us to chat about his still growing career, starting in Ottawa as youngster. We talk to him about leaving Ottawa as its all-time points leader, the grind to earn trust from coach...

The current Head Coach of the French team BCM Gravelines-Dunkerque: J.D. Jackson joins us for Episode 90 of A Hoops Journey. A successful coach overseas but to us in British Columbia and in Canada, J.D. Jackson is so much more than that; a proud UBC Thunderbirds player where he racked up FOUR CIAU (now U SPORT) All-Canadians and two-time CIAU Player of the Year awards with a decorated high school,...

We have current CBC Basketball analyst and Ottawa Blackjacks GM Jevohn Shepherd joining us for Episode 89! A longtime member of the Canadian National Team and a proud, former Michigan Wolverine, Jevohn's journey takes him from the T-Dot to all over Europe as professional player. We chat about the difference in NCAA recruiting from back then to now, Jack Armstrong naps, making (and getting cut) fro...