The final pieces might not be clear until Thursday evening (December 28th) shortly after 7:00 p.m., but for those who have followed the Sudbury Five media releases closely, much of the final roster that will take the court to start the 2023-2024 BSL (Basketball Super League) is already well known.
The last of the pre-Christmas signings would see four more players added to the organizational dept chart beginning with 6'3" guard Cody John from Mississauga.
A graduate of Weber State University, the 27 year-old comes to Sudbury after spending a handful of seasons with the Brampton Honey Badgers of the Canadian Elite Basketball League.
Last season, he averaged 8.3 ppg and 2.3 rebounds per game after spending the 2020-2021 campaign with Ylli Therande in Kosovo and sliding in a 14 game appearance with Omonia Nicosia in Cyprus in 2022-2023.
A few days later, Sudbury coach/GM Logan Stutz welcomed an even more seasoned veteran of the international professional basketball circuits, luring 27 year-old small forward Sam Daniel to northern Ontario.
A 6'8" graduate of Florida Tech University, Daniel has enjoyed post graduate stops in Brazil (Minas), Austria (UBSC Raiffeisen Graz), the Ukraine (MBC Mykolaiv) and most recently Mexico (Caballeros de Culiacan).
"Sam is going to be a big-time player for the Five," said Stutz. "His ability to play many positions is his strength. He can score at all three levels and I think will quickly become a fan favourite."
Finally, training camp in mid-December produced a few more additions with both Michael Bruce (6'4" guard from Ypsilanti, Michigan) and Orlando Little (6'5" guard from Kalamazoo, Michigan) inked to contracts.
Following a couple of years with the Lourdes Gray Wolves (NAIA in Ohio), Bruce signed on with Flint United of The Basketball League while Little toiled with the Davenport University Panthers before connecting with the Kalamazoo Galaxy of the TBL.
The Five prepare to open their fifth season in Sudbury on Thursday evening, welcoming the London Lightning to the Nickel City.
