Former Sault Ste. Marie Batwating H. S. star DJ Wright is now playing pro ball in Spain. Wright left in mid-December after unsuccessfully trying to get eligible to play first at LSU and then at Louisiana Tech. Wright, who will be 21 in June 2008, will now get paid to develop his game in Spain and should do well there once he acclimatizes to a new culture and seizes the opportunity that has been presented to him. He would never have qualified for a Division I program and this is the best option open to him. It's great to see him leave Canada where he was wasting his time.

Former London St. Thomas Aquinas H. S. big man Devon Brennan-McBride 6'8" is finished as a basketball player at Syracuse University where he is in his sophomore year. Devon has developed chronic shoulder problems and can no longer play without fear of re-injury. Syracuse will honour his scholarship through his graduating year. Brennan McBride was one of the most talented big men to come out of an Ontario high school in the past few years and would have been a real asset to the national team program down the road if he had been healthy enough to play.

OUA West basketball fans will be deprived of seeing Western Mustang transfer Keenan Jeppesen perform this winter. A chronic ankle injury will sideline Jeppesen for the remainder of this season and he is aiming to be healthy for September 2008. Keenan will graduate this year and will then begin work on his MBA degree next year. Keenan will have one year to play with his two friends from Hamilton in Matt Curtis and Colin Laforme.

In the spring of 2005 about twenty of Ontario's best high school players headed south to junior colleges in the United States. Since then some have fared quite well and others have found the experience to have been not a good one. Belleville big man Jamie Vanderbeken 6'10" went to Tyler JC in Texas and has thrived. He is playing very well in his sophomore year averaging 13pps and 7rbs per game and is being recruited by Penn State, South Florida, St. John's, Depaul and Iowa State. Vanderbeken should wind up on a high-major roster next year.

Stephen Lopez, one of the best point guards in the province two years ago, went to Bossier JC in Louisiana. After some initial success, Lopez has been sidelined by knee injuries and is sitting out his sophomore year rehabbing. It is uncertain whether he will be able to play the game at a high level again in the future. Windsor, York and McMaster continue to track Lopez's recovery from his injury

Eastern Commerce guard Learie Duncan went down to Kansas powerhouse Coffeyville JC and lasted about a year. My understanding is that he has returned to Toronto and is not currently playing organized basketball. Look for CIS programs to recruit Duncan this winter who could enter a CIS program as a mature student. Duncan will likely go to the AUS Conference next year where St. Mary's and Acadia like mature players from the GTA. .

Former Cathedral H. S. star guard Yannick N'Kindu 6'0" will play for the McMaster Marauders next year after testing the waters at a junior college in New York State last year. N'kindu is currently working and will enter McMaster as a mature student this year. The ultra competitive N'Kindu is an outstanding rebounder and defender from the guard spot and should add some grit to a talented but young back court.

Look for a mad scramble by CIS schools for the services of Pepperdine point guard Kingsley Costain who was dismissed from the school in early November under mysterious circumstances. If Costain returns to Canada he would have two years of eligibility left and would be a championship calibre point guard on a CIS team that can surround him with top level talent. Costain would have one year of eligibility if he chooses to sit out this year and play one more year at the Division I level. Ironically enough, two other Canadians who signed with Pepperdine the same year have also left for greener pastures. Russell Hicks from Niagara Falls is now at Florida International and Toronto's Oliver Prince has followed a winding path to arrive at Florida A&M.

At the turn of the year, Pickering H. S. and Father Henry Carr H. S. are on track to play close to fifty high school games this season. It seems neither coaching staff can turn down a tournament if they are invited. I'm sure other schools play as many games in a season but because these teams are high profile they are the ones that obviously stick out. We have lobbied in this space for restrictions on the number of games and tournaments before. I suspect most of the players on both these teams haven't attended a Friday class since the end of October because of travel commitments. It's high time administrators and OFSAA put some tight parameters on the high school basketball season to bring the teams with excessive schedules under control. To me, in the end having time to practice and not miss too much class time should be the priority here not running off to a tournament every week.