Canada Basketball is pleased to announce that Rowan Barrett (Athlete), Don Cline (Official), Joey Johnson (Athlete), Alison Lang (Athlete), Liz Silcott (Athlete), Tammy Sutton-Brown (Athlete) and Greg Wiltjer (Athlete) will be inducted into the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2023.
Joey joins five other Manitoba players who have received this individual recognition. The other four are Todd MacCulloch, Martin Riley, Fred Ingaldson and Carl Ridd.
The Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held Friday, July 14, 2023, at Gladstone House. Inductees have also been invited to attend GLOBL JAM taking place at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
"Canada has a rich basketball history, and the inductees named to Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2023 reflect just that,” said Paul Jones, Chair of the Canada Basketball Awards & Recognition Committee. “From one of Canada’s most decorated officials to the only Canadian ever to win a WNBA title to the captain of Senior Men’s National Team at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, and many more amazing achievements and accolades, this year’s induction class is truly a special and deserving group.”
The Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be one of the culminating events of GLOBL JAM, as the world-class international basketball showcase returns to Toronto this summer from July 12-16. GLOBL JAM FIVES will feature women’s and men’s Under-23 teams from around the world taking to the court at Toronto’s Mattamy Athletic Centre and broadcast nationally across Sportsnet platforms.
GLOBL JAM tickets are now on sale via Ticketmaster, starting at less than $20 per session for two games. For more information on GLOBL JAM, visit globljam.ca.
Since 1978, the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame has honoured and celebrated those who have contributed to the development and enhancement of basketball in Canada and internationally.
CLASS OF 2023
Joey Johnson (Athlete)
Often considered one of best power players in the world throughout a wheelchair basketball career that lasted nearly two decades, from 1995 until 2002, Joey Johnson represented Canada for almost two decades, including at five Paralympic Games, capturing three gold medals (Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, and London 2012), and one silver (Beijing 2008). He also won a gold medal at the World Championships in 2006 and a Junior World Championship gold in 1997. Johnson was diagnosed with a degenerative hip disease at eight years old and began playing wheelchair basketball the following year. He’d go on to play collegiate wheelchair basketball at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater before playing professionally in both Australia and Germany, where he’d lead his RSV Lahn-Dill club team to seven German league titles in eight years and seven of eight German Cup crowns, winning both trophies six times in the same year. Johnson has been inducted into the Manitoba Basketball Hall of Fame, Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame.
Rowan Barrett (Athlete)
One of the longest-standing Canadian basketball players, Rowan Barrett, proudly represented Canada throughout a 17-year career with the national team, including at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games as team captain. As a member of the national team from 1991 to 2008, Barrett proudly represented Canada internationally on six continents (North America, South America, Europe, Australia, Asia, and Africa) and led Canada to a silver medal at the 1999 Tournament of the Americas. Originally from Scarborough, Ontario, Barrett’s two-decade basketball career began at Scarborough’s West Hill Collegiate Institute in 1987, through New York’s St. John's University from 1992-96 until he retired following professional stops in Spain, Argentina, Venezuela, Cyprus, Greece, Israel, France, and Italy.
Don Cline (Official)
One of Canada's most decorated and highly respected basketball officials, Don Cline, officiated all levels of the game in Canada and worldwide throughout his over 40 years as an official. Cline began officiating in 1970 and just five years later received his FIBA license in 1975. He would go on to officiate two Olympic Games, 1984 in Los Angeles and 1996 in Atlanta, three Olympic Qualifying Tournaments, three World Championships on the men’s side and two more on the women’s. At home, Cline was also a fixture at the university level, officiating 22 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) men’s basketball championships. Off the court, he was active in his local board as a mentor, board member, and clinician who regularly gave his time to help grow the game within the officials' community. After retiring from officiating in 2002, Cline was awarded the Fox 40 High Performance Award for officiating excellence by the Sports Officials of Canada and was inducted into the Ontario Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008. Tragically, Cline passed away suddenly in 2011 at just sixty-four years old.
Alison Lang (Athlete)
As a Canadian Senior Women’s National Team member, Alison Lang proudly represented the country at several international tournaments, including bronze medals at the Pan American Games and World Championship in 1979. She was also a member of Canada’s team that finished fourth at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and played in the 1981 and 1982 Federation Cup and the 1983 Pan American Games. Lang also had an incredible collegiate career with the University of Oregon Ducks from 1980-84 and was the program’s all-time scoring leader (2252 points) until January 2020. During her four years at Oregon, she was a three-time Kodak all-district selection and was voted an All-American twice. In 1996, she was inducted into the University of Oregon’s Hall of Fame and the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
Liz Silcott (Athlete)
Originally from Montreal, QC, Liz Silcott remains one of the most dominant Canadian women’s university basketball players ever. After leading the University of British Columbia to a 43-3 record, including back-to-back CWIAU National Championships and Canada West Championships in 1973 and 1974, Silcott transferred to the Loyola of Montreal for the 1975 season, where she would be named a QUAA First Team All-Star after the team captured the conference championship and finished fifth in the national finals. Silcott took her winning ways to Concordia the following season, where she would lead the league in scoring. Her Stingers compiled a perfect 16-0 record in the QUAA regular season and was again recognized as a conference all-star. In her final collegiate season with the University of Waterloo, Silcott was named a CIS First Team All-Canadian for the first time in her storied career. In 2020, she was named one of U SPORTS Top 100 Women's Basketball Players of the Century.
Tammy Sutton-Brown (Athlete)
From a hall-of-fame career at Rutgers to a 12-year career in the WNBA, Tammy Sutton-Brown left an impact on the game at all levels. As a member of Canada’s national team program, she led the country at several FIBA international tournaments, including the 2000 Olympics. Selected with the 18th overall pick (2nd round, 2nd pick) by the Charlotte Sting in 2001, Sutton-Brown would go on to play 388 games throughout her 12-year WNBA career (most seasons ever by a Canadian) and was a two-time WNBA All-Star, becoming the first Canadian woman to achieve the honour and one of only three Canadians ever to be selected. In 2012 as a member of the Indiana Fever, she became the only Canadian ever to win a WNBA title in her final season with the team. Sutton-Brown also enjoyed a lengthy professional career overseas in South Korea, Russia, and Turkey, where she was a five-time Turkish National League champion (2007–2011), three-time Turkish Cup winner (2007–2009), and two-time Turkish President Cup winner (2007, 2010). Currently, she is Associate, Basketball & Franchise Operations with Raptors 905, NBA G League affiliate of the Toronto Raptors.
Greg Wiltjer (Athlete)
A standout with Canada’s Senior Men’s National Team, Greg Wiltjer represented Canada at several international tournaments, including three FIBA World Championships in 1982, 1986 and 1994. He also was a member of the Canadian National Team that competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics, where he finished second in rebounding. After a season at Oregon State University, Wiltjer transferred to the University of Victoria, where he’d help lead the Vikes to a Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union men’s basketball title in 1984. Wiltjer was selected in the second round (19th pick, 43rd overall) of the 1984 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls. He played eight seasons in Europe, where he captured the FIBA European Cup Winners’ Cup during the 1985-86 season as part of the Spanish Club FC Barcelona. With Greek Club Aris Thessaloniki, he won two Greek League championships in 1988 and 1989 and a pair of Greek Cups in the same years.
Source: http://www.basketball.ca