Sudbury Five Head Coach and GM Logan Stutz called it an honour to be hosting the Basketball Super League’s inaugural all-star game this Saturday at Sudbury Arena.
Besides being an honour to hold the inaugural distinction, Stutz said all-star games themselves — with their skills competitions and more relaxed atmosphere — are just a blast.
“It’s fun,” he said. “It’s a great honour to the players. It will be exciting for everyone, a kind of celebration of basketball.”
Stutz said that the Nickel City was chosen to host is also an honour, while adding a special message for local Five fans.
“It’s an honour to all of Sudbury to be awarded this game from the league,” he said. “Let’s remind them why Sudbury is the best place to be a fan in Canada.”
That the league selected Sudbury also sends an important message that the Nickel City is a good basketball community, which helps grow the game and the fanbase for the Five, Stutz said.
“I think this is great awareness of the basketball footprint in Sudbury. It’s expanding,” he said. “The kids are getting better up here. It’s fun to watch the game grow here.”
In terms of which players to watch when it comes to three-point shooting and dunking during the skills competition, Stutz singled out a couple.
“There are so many great players in our league, (that) it’s tough to pick out a few, but of course, I am biased to the Five players,” he said. “But I would also like to point out the former Five players, Dexter Williams and Curtis Hollis (KW Titans). They are both playing very good basketball and are fun to watch.”
All the fun of the Basketball Super League All-Star Game gets started with the Slam Dunk and Three-point Competitions at 6:15 p.m. followed immediately by the All-Star Game itself, scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
Twenty-two athletes from across the Basketball Super League will showcase their talents at the event, which promises a “full day of fun for all ages.”
Naturally, the Sudbury Five will be well-represented at the all-star game. Repping the Five will be A.J Moseby Jr, Landon Kirkwood, Evan Harris, Duane Notice and Coach Logan Stutz.
Because Sudbury is playing host, it also gets to select the dunk competition judges. They are local radio host G-Rant, retired Sudbury Olympic sprinter Robert Esmie and Sudbury dunk competition guru Jordan Kilganon, creator of the Scorpion Dunk and many others.
And there’s more. Prior to the All-Star evening, the BSL All-Stars and the Sudbury FIVE will kick off the day at 9 a.m. with a free Junior BSL Youth Camp. Open to local kids aged 5-13, the young hoopsters will have the chance to better their skills with the help from the BSL all-stars. will be able to learn from the all stars across the league. To take part in the camp, register here.
Here are the participants in the dunk competition:
- Ty Groce (Express)
- Mason Jones (Toundra)
- Brandon Beloti (Toundra)
- Phil Flory (Toundra)
- Jachai Taylor (Lightning)
- Jaquan Lightfoot (Titans)
- Landon Kirkwood (Five)
The three-point competition shooters are:
- Landon Kirkwood (Five)
- Dexter Williams (Titans)
- Rashad Smith (Lightning)
- AJ Mosby (Five)
- Marquise Collins (Rogues)
- Phillip Flory (Toundra)
- Armani Chaney (Rogues)
- Shadell Millinghaus (Express)
And finally, rounding out Team Red and Team Blue for the all-star game, here’s the breakdown:
Team Blue:
- Aj Mosby Jr. (Five)
- Duane Notice (Five)
- Latin Davis (Express)
- Paul Harrison (Express)
- Shadell Millinghaus (Express)
- Rashad Smith (Lightning)
- Nick Garth (Lightning)
- Mambi Dwiara (Toudra)
- Marquise Collins (Rogues)
- Jaylon Tate (Titans)
- Jaquan Lightfoot (Titans)
- Coach Jerry Williams (Rogues)
Team Red:
- Landon Kirkwood (Five)
- Evan Harris (Five)
- Phil Flory (Toundra)
- Antoine Mason (Toundra)
- Armani Chaney (Rogues)
- William Brown (Rogues)
- Dexter Williams Jr. (Titans)
- Curtis Hollis (Titans)
- Jachai Taylor (Lightning)
- Tyler Groce (Express)
- Coach Logan Stutz (Five)
Tickets for the all-star evening are on-sale starting at $15 (HST included). Tickets are available at the Sudbury Arena box office or online at GreaterSudbury.ca/tickets.
Season members can secure their tickets at an exclusive member discount which is available through their online ticketing portal, or at the Sudbury Arena box office.
Super fan Robert McCarthy covers Sudbury Wolves games for Sudbury.com. Got a question for Robert? Email it to [email protected].
