The Canadian Elite Basketball League (LECB) is approaching Quebec, the market it wants to conquer. The best players in the professional scene will go head-to-head on August 26 at the Videotron Center in Quebec City as part of the LECB’s inaugural duel, Commissioner Mike Morreale and Quebecor announced on Thursday.
· Also read: Professional basketball at the Videotron Centre? Quebecor is in talks with the LECB
· Also read: “Quebec is here,” says the basketball community of the potential arrival of an LECB team
· Also read: Beginning in December, a professional basketball team will play in Quebec City
Notably, NBA graduates Jalen Harris, who once played for the Raptors, and Treveon Graham, who played for three clubs, will be part of this confrontation, which will see representatives from the eastern and western leagues go head-to-head.
The two teams will also be made up of stars of the scene who also play on the Canada men’s national team, former members of the G League, which is a bit like the NBA’s “American League,” and athletes who’ve made the mark in the European leagues.
“It’s going to be a very celebratory event,” said Sports and Entertainment Group of Quebecor Chief Operating Officer Martin Tremblay on Thursday. […] They are the best players on the circuit. There will be NBA veterans. There are people in Quebec who travel every year to attend NBA games elsewhere. And there we will have an exceptional level of play in Quebec.
Photo courtesy of the LECB
“Very advanced” discussions
As Le Journal recently reported, Quebecor and the LECB have been discussing the possible arrival of a league team in Quebec for several weeks. Mr. Tremblay doesn’t hide the fact that hosting the game on August 26 is a way to test the city’s true passion for pro basketball.
“The talks are very advanced,” he confirmed at a press conference on Thursday. The league has an interest in expansion, we have an interest in acquiring a franchise. Now it remains to be seen whether the August 26 event will interest people. When people are there, having fun and loving basketball, we are there too.
In May 2024?
If that “test” proves conclusive, a team could be based at the Videotron Center as early as May 2024, Mr Tremblay said. The amphitheater would then be configured in “basketball mode”, meaning the upper aisles could be curtained off to make the atmosphere more intimate.
“In Winnipeg [où les Sea Bears jouent au Canada Life Centre, l’amphithéâtre des Jets]”There were 8,000 spectators at their opening game,” said Martin Tremblay. What have you done? Exactly what we would do. Cordon off the upper tiers, create atmosphere in the lower tiers, because basketball is a sport that is beautiful to watch but also an event. It’s fun to be there.
Mr. Tremblay would not put a number on the percentage chance a team would settle in Quebec. Mike Morreale said he was “incredibly confident”.
“If we want it to happen, both of our groups will make it,” Moreale said. But I know that this event is very important [pour Québecor]. […] This may be the last step before announcing a team’s arrival.
10 teams in Canada
Established five years ago, the Canadian Elite Basketball League is considered the premier league of basketball in Canada, with the exception of the NBA’s Toronto Raptors. The company is currently present in 10 cities, including Montreal, Toronto (Scarborough to be precise), Ottawa, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Calgary.
The LECB’s seasons run from May to August, which, should a concession arrive in Quebec, would not conflict with the meetings of the Remparts, whose acquisition cost would be “in the seven figures”. said Martin Tremblay.
“The students are on leave [durant l’été]. They can come to party and watch basketball, Mr Tremblay explained. We think this complements the sports offering at Center Videotron well. […] In winter, the Videotron Center is 100% Remparts. So we have a hockey offer, the favorite sport of Quebecers. And [on pourrait avoir] Basketball, a sport that’s booming in Canada in the summer.”
▶ Presale of tickets for subscribers to the Videotron Center newsletter has been going on since Thursday at 12pm, while general public sales begin this Friday at 12pm on gestev.com.
Affordable tickets and teams close to the community
Basketball is a sport that appeals primarily to a younger crowd, notes Elite Basketball League commissioner Mike Morreale. The latter therefore says it is important that his circuit offers tickets at an “affordable” price.
“Our starting price is around $20,” he said Thursday of his league’s other teams already in business. On average, it’s about $30.
“Of course, if you sit next to the field [courtside]the price is much more expensive but it is the best place to be there,” added Mr. Morreale, laughing.
The commissioner believes that everything is done to ensure that young people have fun. “You can come here for two hours and we know young people these days don’t like to be kept busy and there’s always action,” he said. There are DJs, music, lots of excitement and the level of play on the pitch is amazing.”
Players will arrive earlier
For his part, Martin Tremblay, Chief Operating Officer of Sports and Entertainment Group of Quebecor, notes that the league is very close to its community.
The players who will take part in the Duel de la LECB on August 26th at the Videotron Center will arrive in the city a few days before to meet the Quebec basketball players.
“We want them to talk to people [de basket] from Laval University, said Mr Tremblay. We want the basketball community to have access to the players, to chat with them, to democratize the product a bit, to share the stars to generate interest.
A rivalry that makes you dream
Annie Larouche, vice president of operations for the Alliance, the Montreal club at the LECB, says she sees an interest from Quebec in the circuit herself. And, of course, it makes her dream of a possible Quebec-Montreal basketball rivalry.
Ms. Larouche points out that Allianz has been successful at the counters since arriving in the metropolis last year. “Our capacity at the Verdun Auditorium is 3,500 people,” she explained. We averaged about 3,000 people per game, so there’s a lot of interest.