'It still stings': Canada Basketball using Olympic letdown as fuel for Los Angeles, says CEO

Myles Dichter · for CBC Sports

· Posted: Mar 24, 2025 7:07 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

In the weeks pursuing Canada's nonaccomplishment to France astatine the Paris Olympics men's hoops tournament, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gathered teammates successful a gym astatine Humber College adjacent Toronto.

Players included Olympians, those who missed the chopped and a fewer Oklahoma City Thunder players, too.

A mates months later, Canada's women's squad — caller disconnected an 0-3 Olympic show — silently gathered successful Toronto with players, coaches, enactment unit and the nationalist federation to illustration a program toward Los Angeles 2028.

In December, a 3x3 radical that ran roughshod implicit its opponents for 3 years successful the lead-up to Paris, but heartbreakingly missed the podium portion there, returned to the winner's ellipse astatine the FIBA AmeriCup. Then they did it again astatine the inaugural Champions Cup earlier successful March.

Paris was expected to beryllium a renaissance for Canadian basketball, featuring 3 teams each with morganatic medal hopes.

Instead, it was the embodiment of an aged saying: the higher the climb, the harder the fall.

WATCH | Canadian men's team endures disappointing exit from 2024 Olympic tournament:

"It inactive stings, I won't lie," Canada Basketball CEO Mike Bartlett said successful a caller interrogation with CBC Sports. "Our athletes, our coaches, our staff, we each wanted much and wanted amended and great. That's wherefore we're successful sports."

In the aftermath of the Olympics, Canada Basketball has undergone important change.

Women's wide manager Denise Dignard and caput manager Victor LaPena moved on, arsenic did men's caput manager Jordi Fernandez.  None were fired, but successful each cases 1 oregon some parties seemed to recognize thing was holding them backmost from the indispensable level of commitment.

Bartlett said Canada Basketball is aiming to person coaching replacements successful spot by precocious outpouring oregon aboriginal summer.

He noted that does not mean, however, that the caput manager successful either lawsuit volition needfully beryllium from Canada.

"There volition beryllium much Canadian contented connected our seat than ever earlier connected each age-group squad each the mode up to elder team. That I tin committedness Canada for sure," helium said.

Bartlett added that determination is plentifulness of involvement successful some jobs.

"It's taking clip and we got to get done it, but it's surely amended than the alternative. We don't person to person anyone to privation to manager Canada close now," helium said.

It's a lawsuit that's aided by Gilgeous-Alexander, who astatine 26 appears headed toward becoming the 2nd Canadian to ever triumph MVP aft Steve Nash did it twice.

WATCH | Achonwa affectional portion reflecting connected Canada's travel to Paris Games:

Bartlett compared Gilgeous-Alexander's enactment effect connected the nationalist squad to Sidney Crosby.

"We've got a hard-working radical of athletes, each of whom are having unthinkable seasons this twelvemonth aft suffering unthinkable heartbreak past year. And bash I deliberation that it's nonstop origin and effect? No. But bash I deliberation determination was a occurrence lit? Yeah, I do," helium said.

The optimism astir the men's squad is mirrored for the women, for whom Los Angeles has ever been the existent medal target.

That's erstwhile a existent WNBAer similar Aaliyah Edwards mightiness beryllium successful her premier and surrounded by vets similar Kia Nurse and Bridget Carleton arsenic good arsenic existent NCAA stars similar Duke's Toby Fournier and Michigan's Syla Swords.

The women's team's "off-grid" meeting, arsenic Bartlett referred to it, produced a brace of "all-in" two-year plans — 1 to get to the World Cup successful 2026, and the different en way to the Olympics.

Canada Basketball keeps 100 player-deep extent charts that rotation retired to 2036, and successful immoderate cases see those arsenic young arsenic 14.

"It's not conscionable the 20 that are successful the NBA. It's not conscionable the 4 that are successful the W. If hoops is being played astatine a precocious level close now, there's a Canadian playing a relation successful it. And that's beauteous exciting," Bartlett said.

Los Angeles besides presents a unsocial accidental for Canada arsenic nationalism feels heightened successful the aftermath of U.S. president Donald Trump's 51st-state threats.

"I firmly judge determination is 1 athletics — one sport — in the L.A. Olympics wherever we could spell down to the U.S. and virtually bargain their pridefulness from them by winning, and that would beryllium basketball. So we request to thin into that reality. We request to ain that reality. That has to beryllium our ambition crossed our programs," Bartlett said.

Now, immoderate unsocial way each squad takes volition beryllium each astir preparing to beryllium its champion imaginable aforesaid successful Los Angeles.

"That's an breathtaking happening to get retired of furniture reasoning astir each day," Bartlett said. "So wherever are we connected our way to the Olympics? We're already determination successful our mind, and we're already moving backwards from that moment."

Toronto Tempo primed for arrival

Professional hoops does not autumn nether the Canada Basketball mandate, adjacent portion it benefits some sides to intimately enactment together.

Next May, a caller squad volition get arsenic the WNBA's Toronto Tempo extremity disconnected their inaugural season.

Bartlett said the enactment has begun moving connected collaborations with the Tempo and hopes the squad prioritizes Canadian talent.

In the longer term, Bartlett said helium believes the Tempo tin assistance pave the way for a home women's pro league, similar soccer's Northern Super League that volition footwear disconnected adjacent month.

On that front, helium described Canada Basketball arsenic an "interested stakeholder," though determination is thing instantly successful the works.

"I inactive deliberation it's a spot of clip away. I deliberation the occurrence of the Tempo volition really beryllium a tipping constituent towards it. The concern lawsuit and the hoops lawsuit for women's hoops successful this state volition get stronger due to the fact that of the Tempo being successful the league now, and I deliberation that volition beryllium a domino that's important towards yet a women's home pro league," helium said.