The last of the confetti has fallen on the conclusion of the 2025 Canadian Elite Basketball League’s seventh and longest season yet. The Niagara River Lions emerged victorious from the Championship Weekend once again, this time in Winnipeg, now back-to-back champions.
With the season wrapping, this is the perfect opportunity to rate each club’s season, considering what
was good, bad, and ugly for each team and what needs to be done next year (and for a little bonus, I included one of my favourite dunks from each team).
Brampton Honey Badgers: D-
Spending the season at the bottom of the standings, they managed only 5 wins the entire summer. Their relocation seems to continue to hamper the fan attendance as well, where they also sit at the bottom of the league. They struggled to score, struggled defensively, and managed to be blown out repeatedly.
The only reason the season wasn’t an F was the signing of former NBA champion Quinndary Weatherspoon and the solid play of Canadians Koby McEwen and David Muenkat.
The Honey Badgers’ roster needs a complete overhaul and more support from the community and fans.
Calgary Surge: A
Since becoming a team, they’ve earned their way to the championship weekend all three years. Making their way back to the finals this year after a tough loss in the semi-finals last year showed their improvement and resilience as a team. Going up against the reigning champs was a challenge, and although they weren’t able to win, they still managed to overcome the West, an achievement in itself.
They ended the season as the second seed, boasting various accolades from their team, with Jameer Nelson Jr. winning Defensive Player of the Year and CEBL Second-Team honours, Greg Brown III being named to the CEBL First-Team, and Sean Miller-Moore named as CEBL All-Canadian team while being runner-up for the Canadian Player of the Year.
The Surge finished the year with the league-best defence, including most rebounds and steals per game. They were one of the few teams that beat the Bandits this year, managing to sweep them in all three contests. They were a fun team to watch, with fluid offence, an aggressive defence, and all of the important building blocks for a championship team.
For next season, the most important part will be retaining their core. Greg Brown III, Jameer Nelson Jr., Sean Miller-Moore, and Evan Gilyard II developed immense chemistry on both ends of the floor. Retaining them and helping develop the bench around them will mean at a minimum, a return to the conference finals.
Edmonton Stingers: B-
Finishing the season 15-9, the Stingers wrapped a somewhat underwhelming summer. They had strong individual performances, and held the third place in the league, but were unable to deliver more. The play of Sean East II helped elevate them and earn him a CEBL First-Team award. Scottie Lindsey was an excellent Robin to Sean’s Batman, along with help from Keon Ambrose-Hilton, Nick Horsnby, and Chris Smith.
Unfortunately, stuck in the Western conference they couldn’t hold their own, falling to Calgary in the play-in and missing the Championship weekend once again, for the fourth straight year.
It’s not to say the team didn’t have its moments this season. Sean East II set a scoring record for the league this year with the most points in a single season. Keon Ambrose-Hilton had an 18-rebound game against Vancouver, another impressive feat.
Moving forward, the dynamic backcourt of Lindsey and East II can help deliver wins, but shoring up their bench and improving defensively (especially in the paint) will be the big needs of the offseason. With the second-worst team defence in the league, their offence can only do so much for them.
Montreal Alliance: D
Ending with a 9-15 record, third last in the league, the expectations for Montreal were higher. Since its inception, they have made the playoffs only once, and by default as they hosted last year. They have struggled to sign and retain talent over the years, leading to a roster with more turnover in comparison to the rest of the league.
Signing Raptors 905 and Canada Basketball mainstay Quincy Guerrier was a win for them, as well as Tavian Dunn-Martin, but they struggled for support on both ends of the floor. In the end, they were easily eliminated by Scarborough in the play-in.
From a statistical standpoint, the Alliance were in the upper half of the league by most of the common analytics. This didn’t translate to wins though, especially in close games and in target time.
For next season, the return of Montreal native Guerrier is the first step, although with his continued rise in the G-League and on the international stage, it’s unclear if he would be willing to come back. The next task will be building a roster that can support guys like Guerrier and Dunn-Martin.
Niagara River Lions: A+
It’s hard to give anything less than an A+ to the champs. With the majority of their roster from last year returning, they were primed to repeat. Despite struggles throughout the season and a record of only 14-10, they brought it together when it mattered.
Khalil Ahmad put on a number of remarkable performances for the River Lions, earning himself the nickname “The Lion King”. Despite often being the one they rely on in target situations, he continued to deliver, winning his second Finals MVP and being named to the CEBL Second Team.
Alongside Ahmad, Ron Curry, Kimbal Mackenzie, Ahmed Hill, Edward Ekiyor, Nathan Cayo, and Elijah Lufile all contributed throughout the season, ultimately helping to deliver their second championship in as many years. Their grit, aggression, and energy were the keys for them. They already knew what it took, and went all in.
The keys to three-peating (and being the first CEBL team to do so) will be to retain Ahmad above all else, and bring back their core of champions.
Ottawa BlackJacks: B
This was a brutal season for Ottawa, who struggled with repeated injuries up and down the roster, late arrivals, and early departures. Despite starting 2-6, they ended 12-12, good for second in the East.
Their effort wavered sometimes, leading them to a number of frustrating single-possession losses throughout the season. Their signing of Javonte Smart partway through the season was their best addition and addressed this issue, allowing Isaih Moore, Zane Waterman, and Deng Adel to all elevate as well. Smart was named to the CEBL First Team and led the league in points per game while setting a franchise record for points in a single game.
They were primed to make it to the Championship weekend, handily defeating Scarborough just before the playoffs kicked off. Alas, the absence of their entire starting lineup for the Eastern Conference semifinal for a variety of reasons meant they fell to Scarborough handily.
If they can recreate this roster and amp up their effort next year, they will be contenders. They do need to get a bit more rebounding as well.
Saskatchewan Rattlers: D+
Second-last in the league, this season was about building culture more than it was about generating wins. They didn’t have any First or Second-Team players, missed the playoffs, and won only 7 games. But the players who are there have learned a lot about their city and fans and put together some fun basketball.
Isaac Simon did win Development Player of the Year after some solid play. Bediako, Ifejeh, Simon, and Anticevich were the most consistent for the team. Pierre-Louis, Jones, John, Bowden and Bandoo had solid scoring performances but missed time.
Saskatchewan needs to continue to develop and build a winning culture, and find a few guys with hometown pride and players that want to win for the city. The return of guys like Jones, Bediako, and Bowden couldn’t hurt either.
Scarborough Shooting Stars: B
With some of the biggest signings in the league over the years, the expectations for Scarborough will always be really high. After their championship in 2023, they were eliminated by the eventual champions the last two years. Not a bad way to go, but definitely disappointing.
One of their issues is roster turnover. They had 18 different guys suit up for them this season alone, with Donovan Williams and Terquavion Smith, their premier guys playing only 16 and 15 games respectively. Kat Barber, Aaron Best, Hason Ward, and Kalif Young all came and went, meaning a lack of consistency was part of their struggle that saw them fall to the 3-seed in the East. An easy pathway through the weakened Alliance and BlackJacks rosters were the only thing that gave them such an easy berth to the playoffs.
Roster consistency and the return of some of the guys like Walker or Best that know the program would be good first steps for next year. Free-throw shooting also needs a drastic improvement where they were the worst in the league. Also focusing on not being too top-heavy and working to improve the bench will also help them as they seek their second championship.
Vancouver Bandits: A-
Coming into the playoffs as the best team in the league with a 19-5 record, the league MVP and First-Team recipient in Mitch Creek, the Canadian Player of the Year, Second-Team, All-Canadian team, and Clutch Player of the Year in Tyrese Samuel, and Coach of the Year in Kyle Julius they were the heavy favourite.
Despite the accolades and their record, Calgary had their number all year and came out victorious in a single-possession play-in game that prevented the Bandits from travelling to Winnipeg for the playoffs.
A disappointing twist of fate, but Vancouver’s roster and coaching structure is phenomenal. There is no way that they won’t be right back in the mix next year. Their priorities should be to maintain the tandem of Creek and Samuel, along with Givance to shore up the backcourt. Building around those guys with similarly-minded tough and energetic players should be just enough to push them over the edge.
Winnipeg Sea Bears: C
It’s always hard for the host team to earn respect based on their automatic entrance into the playoff weekend. They lost in the semifinals to Calgary, but as the four seed in the West, shouldn’t really have been there to begin with.
Simi Shittu had an excellent season, earning Second-Team and All-Canadian honours. Former Raptor Jalen Harris also had an excellent season, but didn’t earn recognition for it. Later additions Trevon Scott and Will Richardson were both helpful, but it wasn’t enough to help them.
They took care of the ball well, averaging the fewest turnovers in the league. The biggest issue for them to address will be scoring. While they had a strong tandem in Shittu and Harris, they needed help around them to take on some of that load. Bringing in a couple of solid and efficient scorers next year could be a game changer for the Sea Bears.
Now most of the players will head off to their next team, with some heading overseas to Europe, Australia, and China, while others travel south to compete in the NBA G-League. While we will have to wait another 9 months for the next season that will tip off in May, it’s always fun to keep up with the guys as they play abroad and think about what next season will look like.
