Calgary Surge 2024 Season Preview Part II: Roster Breakdown

Only three returners but a whole lot of skill. Can they get the job done in 2024?

Photos by Ethan Bomhof

The day has finally come.

Tonight the Calgary Surge and their crosstown rival, the Edmonton Stingers, tip off the 2024 CEBL season at the Scotiabank Saddledome. The Surge are already reporting that it will be a historic night in terms of attendance and there’s no better stage to do it than for a battle of Alberta.

We’ve experienced months of community events and sponsorship announcements but it’s finally time to see the Surge hit the hardwood in front of a passionate fanbase. Don’t get me wrong, it has been fantastic to see the Surge emerging themselves in the community and growing their brand in Calgary; but, they’re still a basketball team and their supporters expect success on the court.

There has been a lot of focus on the off-court success of the organization but we’ll now turn to the main product. After falling just short last season, the team will look to complete the mission in just their second campaign. Will the incoming group of players be able to replicate last year's success? For the SurgeStack’s second and final part of the 2024 season preview, let’s dive into the rundown on who will be hitting the court for the Surge and how the year might play out.

Returning Players

This is where we have to start when breaking down the team. There’s good news and there’s not-so-great news. I’ll deal you the worse news first: the Surge have only re-signed three players from their inaugural season; the least in the entire CEBL for 2024. Good news: those three players are Sean “Rugzy” Miller-Moore, Stef Smith and Justin Jackson.

Let’s start with Rugzy. The human highlight reel is back in black for the 2024 season. Miller-Moore was announced as the Surge’s first signing for their second season. Miller-Moore bloomed as a fan-favourite in Calgary in 2023, continually wowing the WinSport faithful with his emphatic and athletic dunks. The Brampton product boasts an incredibly vertical jump and routinely soared high above the rim for earth-shattering slams and awe-striking swats. Rugzy’s campaign earned him a spot on the 2023 CEBL All-Canadian Team.

So what can we expect from double-zero in this upcoming season? Everyone knows the guard can make plays above the rim but Rugzy is much more than just a dunker. Miller-Moore became the Surge’s number-one option on offence and his athleticism was pivotal for the team’s success in the half-court. The former Grand Canyon University Antelope may be tasked with a more significant role on defence but there is no reason that he is not capable of that.

One thing that was a bit of a head-scratcher was Miller-Moore’s lack of gameplay over the winter. Most CEBL players head overseas or down to the NBA G-League. Rugzy had a brief appearance in the G-League’s Greensboro Swarm’s training camp but was quickly waived before the season started. The guard then spent most of the season without a home before joining the Westchester Knicks where he played two games for a total of 9.9 minutes.

Next is who I consider the Surge's most important player, Stefan Smith. Arguably the clutchest player in the CEBL is back for an encore. Shane James made sure to prioritize filling out his backcourt by locking up Miller-Moore and Smith with contracts and it puts the team right back into contention for the CEBL championship. Smith may have been snubbed for the All-Canadian team but make no mistake, he is one of the most impactful canucks in the league.

As I reported earlier, Smith will arrive late to Calgary as he is in the midst of a playoff run with Orléans Loiret Basket of the LNB Pro B (France’s second division). It is a significant loss for however long he is absent.

The good news is Smith continues to do nothing but improve his game. In 2023, he was the Surge’s most consistent three-point shooter, an area that they struggled to be consistent in. His shooting ability of the dribble paired with exceptional court vision gives Calgary the floor general that they need to be successful. Most notable of all, Smith possesses a clutch gene that is unmatched in the league. Game after game, he came up clutch in target time which was most memorably seen with his three-point dagger over Vancouver’s Nick Ward to send the Surge to the league championship game.

Lastly is the wild card of returners, Justin Jackson. The former NBA second-round draft pick only played in five games for the Surge in 2023, totalling 55.8 minutes. Despite Jackson’s limited playing time, he was one of the team’s most effective offensive and defensive players. For starters, Jackson can shoot the three; a category that Calgary struggled in last year. Additionally, the forward was impactful on the defensive end. While playing on the league best defence, Jackson recorded the CEBL’s fifth-best DBPM score of 3.2 (per canadianbasketballanalytics.carrd.co). According to Basketball Reference, DBPM (defensive box plus/minus) is a “basketball box score-based metric that estimates a basketball player’s contribution to the team when that player is on the court. It is based only on the information in the traditional basketball box score--no play-by-play data or non-traditional box score data.”

Taking that stat for what it is, Justin Jackson deserves to be on the court this year. He is a terrific basketball player and makes the most of his time. The Toronto native knows how to use his 7’3” wingspan to make plays on both ends of the court. I expect nothing but good things from Justin this season. Along with his versatility on the court, his personality is a shining light in the locker room. The guy is hilarious and always smiling. I think he will be a fan favourite this year.

Other CEBL Experience

Surge have three other players on their roster with CEBL experience: Malcolm Duvivier, Mathieu Kamba and Matt Grace.

Duvivier, a four-year CEBL veteran, spent the past three seasons with Fraser Valley/Vancouver Bandits. In 2022, he played for the Edmonton Stingers in the BCLAs at the WinSport Event Centre. Thus, this will not be his first time as a player on the home team at WinSport.

Duvivier is a wide, strong guard who is a good defender and an excellent three-pointer shooter. He averaged 10.2 points and .316% from beyond the arc last year for the Bandits. Despite standing only 6’2” he is a ball magnet off the glass. He grabbed an average of 6.2 boards, ranking third on the Bandits, just below rebounding juggernauts, Nick Ward and Giorgi Bezhanishvili.

I see Duvivier as one of the first guys to come off the bench for the Surge. CEBL experience is few and far between on the Surge and it is something that the veteran brings to the second-year franchise. His size and skill set reminds me a lot of Desmond Bane of the Memphis Grizzlies.

Along with Duvivier is the hometown kid Mathieu Kamba. The local Calgarian will arrive late to Calgary and is currently with Palencia Baloncesto of Liga ACB (Spain’s top division). Kamba is a product of Bishop McNally High School in northeast Calgary and has been a pro for 10 years. His most recent experience in the CEBL came with the Edmonton Stingers in which he won two league championships.

Kamba possesses a bit of an unorthodox shooting motion but it doesn’t stop him from scoring. He is efficient on the catch-and-shoot. During his recent time in Spain, his athleticism and excellent footwork was the focal point of his game and his team would prioritize it. I’m excited to see how it translates to the CEBL game. It’s also great to have local on the Surge.

The Surge signed Matt Grace, a product of Hamilton, Ont. and University of Richmond. Grace played just a single game for Scarborough last year. The stretch four will be a key piece to come off the bench and add additional spacing to the floor with his ability to shoot the three.

Coming from South of the Border

In 2023, the few American players on the Surge were extremely crucial to their success. Unfortunately, none of them are back for 2024. It’s a bit of a shock. I thought there was a chance of the team re-signing Terry Henderson Jr. and Kylor Kelley.

As the reality of this level of professional basketball, Calgary was not able to re-sign any of the 2023 batch.

However, that doesn’t mean the incoming group of Yanks are not able to fill the void. Corey Davis Jr., and Justin Lewis are the two Americans that have signed with the Surge for 2024.

Corey Davis Jr. is a 6’1” guard who will most likely be starting at the one for the Surge’s opener. If there’s one way I can sum up Davis Jr., he’s is fun to watch. His strength is his agility. It seems like he has more fast twitch muscles than anyone I’ve ever seen before. His quick hands make him a threat when handling the ball and he can pick up a sneaky takeaway on defence.

Davis Jr.’s quickness also gives him an advantage on his pull-up jumper. When he puts his head down, a defender often thinks that he’s going to go all the way to the hoop until he stops on a dime to pull up for a jump shot. I think he’ll be an impact player right off the bat. How’s this for a prediction: Davis Jr. will score the Surge’s first basketball of the season.

Justin Lewis is a young forward who has been poking around the NBA and G-League after spending two years at Marquette University. Don’t be surprised if Lewis breaks out as a star for the Surge this season. He’s a 3-and-D that I can see logging heavy minutes for Calgary. His physical attributes are what stands out to me; wide shouldered but still agile and athletic.

First time CEBL Canadians and U SPORTS Draftees

The Surge made a big slash with their three U SPORTS draft picks this year, picking Dondre Reddick in the first round, Mike Demagus in the second and Noah Wharton in the the third.

Playing in his hometown for St. Francis Xavier University, Dondre Reddick has been a huge part of the X-Men’s success over the past few years. There are the obvious ties between St. FX and Calgary with legendary former head coach Steve Konchalski serving as senior advisor. It started with the hiring of ‘Coach K’ to drafting Deon Ejim in 2023, to hiring Tyrell Vernon as the new head coach and then drafting Reddick with the ninth overall pick.

Reddick probably deserved to be playing in the CEBL last year, so it’s much deserved to see him in the league. He’s plays with a silky-smooth style, is a quality ball handler and a exceptional perimeter defender. I see him being one of the first players Coach Vernon turns to off the bench.

I am not as familiar with Mike Demagus as the other two Surge picks but judging from his highlights, he can score the ball with ease. He is long and athletic which will be impactful on a Surge team that is not fruitful in bigs.

I was happy to see the Surge draft a local university player in Noah Wharton. The Canada West Third-Team All Star formed arguably the best backcourt in the entire country for the UofC Dinos with Nate Petrone, who was selected just a few picks before Wharton by, of course, the Edmonton Stingers. Petrone got most of the spotlight for the Dinos but Wharton is no slouch. He is an excellent ball handler and shooter. With Stef Smith arriving late to Calgary, Wharton could get extended minutes off the bench.

The Surge also added another St. FX player with Gutluak James. the 6-5 wing will be a U SPORTS developmental player this season.

There is one category left: a Canadian not from U SPORTS who has not played in the CEBL. The lone player that fits the bill is former West Virginia Mountaineer Gabe Osabuohien. The forward will have to do a lot of the heavy lifting on the glass and will be tasked to guard opposing teams starting bigs. Most notably, Osabuohien will most likely be match up with Edmonton’s Brody Clarke. Clarke and former Surge star Simi Shittu gave the BOA crowd some memorable battles in the paint last season. Osabuohien takes over an important role.

Cuts

Per the Surge’s email that went out today, they have made a few cuts from the training camp roster. Canadians Emmanuel Ansah, Otas Iyekekpolar, Mambi Diawara and American Billy Preston Jr. have all been let go by the team.

The most puzzling cut is Billy Preston Jr. The 6-11 forward was projected to be one of the starting bigs. I am curious what led to the decision of Preston Jr. being let go or if he left on his own volition.

So that’s the team! I remain cautiously optimistic about the roster construction. Shane James did a fantastic job last season so he deserves every bit of optimism for the second year.

Here’s to another year of pro basketball in our great city. Go Surge Go!