Rattlers And Bandits Seeking Consistency In Season Three Of The CEBL
Justine Jones • June 26, 2021
The Saskatchewan Rattlers and Fraser Valley Bandits will tip off their 2021 CEBL seasons on June 26 at 7 p.m. ET at the Abbotsford Centre, marking the return of professional basketball to British Columbia for the first time since the COVID-19 shutdown.
Through two seasons, both franchises have finished near the top and bottom of the standings. This year they will look to establish themselves as consistent contenders in the CEBL.
Saskatchewan came into the league hot, winning the inaugural CEBL title in 2019 in front of a loud and proud Saskatoon crowd. But in the 2020 CEBL Summer Series, the team missed out on the playoffs, finishing at 1-5 and spending a large portion of the two-week condensed season nursing minor injuries.
This narrative is opposite of the Fraser Valley Bandits, who struggled in the 2019 CEBL season finishing at 4-16, but turned it around last year with a remarkable run to the championship. While they were ultimately defeated by their western rival, the Edmonton Stingers, head coach Kyle Julius was proud of the team’s gritty play.
Welcome back
Saskatchewan will have a familiar face behind the bench this season in Chad Jacobson. The Rattlers head coach was an assistant during their 2019 championship season before taking over full coaching duties last year.
Returning players Kemy Osse, Negus Webster-Chan, Denzell Taylor, Jelane Pryce, and Kai Williams will also give Saskatchewan a boost. In addition to keeping this core group of Canadians together, the Rattlers have added a crucial off-season import from the championship-winning Edmonton Stingers in Travis Daniels.
The six-foot-eight forward is a strong scorer and defender who will bring size to the Rattlers’ line up as well as a solid presence on the glass. Daniels was named a CEBL First Team All-Star in both 2019 and 2020 and is a versatile player who will be counted upon to play multiple positions in the front court.
Shoes to fill
While the Fraser Valley franchise may be called the Bandits, it was they who were robbed this off-season with the Ottawa BlackJacks and Niagara River Lions swiping two of the Bandits’ veteran players in Junior Cadougan and Olu Ashaolu. This, in addition to head coach Kyle Julius staying overseas in Taiwan, means there will be high expectations for the incoming recruits this season.
Former Fraser Valley assistant coach David Singleton will take over as bench boss and will look to continue with the same type of physical and tenacious play they found success with last year.
Guards Malcolm Duvivier and Marek Klassen are the only two returning from the 2020 roster. This duo will be asked to lead and continue to facilitate Fraser Valley’s signature gritty and persistent style of play.
Duvivier ranked in the team’s top three in both points per game and rebounds per game last year. As a dependable two-way player, the six-foot-two guard was named the team’s defensive player of the year and MVP last season.
The other backcourt Bandit, Klassen, averaged 9.3 points and 3.4 assists per game in 2020. The Abbotsford native is entering his third season with Fraser Valley and is the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. He was previously named a CEBL Second Team All-Star in 2019.
Klassen and Duvivier will anchor the Bandits’ backcourt this season alongside a key off-season acquisition in Alex Campbell.
Old friends
Campbell will square off against his old team, the Saskatchewan Rattlers on Saturday night. He travels west alongside his former Rattlers teammate, Shaquille Keith.
Keith finds himself in a new CEBL jersey for the third straight season having played for Saskatchewan in year one, and in the nation’s capital in year two. The Toronto, Ont., native played a key role for the expansion BlackJacks last season, averaging 10.3 points per game on 51.4 per cent shooting.
Campbell previously captained the Rattlers to the title in 2019 and won the CEBL Finals MVP as the team’s leader in points, minutes, and three-point shooting percentage.
In 2020, the six-foot-two guard took his talents overseas to Finland playing for Lahti Basketball Club and led the team to a fifth place finish. Campbell brings veteran leadership and championship pedigree to the Valley, and will be a key piece both against his former team and for the duration of the season.
All CEBL games will be available for live streaming on the CEBL’s new OTT streaming service, CEBL+, cbcsports.ca, the free CBC Gem streaming service, the CBC Sports App for iOS and android devices, and on Twitch.
A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 75 percent of its current rosters being Canadians. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League Partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season typically runs from May through August. Head to CEBL.ca for more information or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook & YouTube.
LATEST NEWS
The Vancouver Bandits announced Monday that the club has re-signed American guard Zach Copeland for his third consecutive Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) season. A 6-foot-4 guard from Oakland, Calif., Copeland has logged 37 games for the club averaging 16.8 points, 3.1 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game across the past two seasons. Having built a reputation as an elite sharpshooter and clutch scorer, Copeland led the CEBL in total three-pointers made during the 2024 season with 67 and ranked second overall in 2025 with an average of 3.5 three-pointers per game. Most recently, Copeland played professionally in Italy during the 2025-26 season splitting time between New Basket Brindisi and Tramec Cento where he averaged 15.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists across 39 games played. His overseas career also includes stops in Germany, Finland, Ukraine and England. Copeland began his post-secondary career at City College of San Francisco, where his performance in the 2016-17 season earned him both the Coast-North Conference Player of the Year and the California Community Colleges Men's Basketball Coaches Association Co-Player of the Year awards. His impressive play at the junior college level led him to transfer to Illinois State University, where he played two seasons of NCAA Division I basketball from 2018-20. In his final year at Illinois State, Copeland became the Redbirds’ leading scorer with 14.5 points per game, also ranking 7th among Missouri Valley Conference leaders and establishing himself as one of the conference's top players.
The Vancouver Bandits have announced that forward Miller Kopp has signed an NBA Summer League contract with the Houston Rockets. The news was announced by the Rockets on the club’s website in a release .  Appearing in 14 games (13 starts), Kopp quickly established himself as a key Import player for the Bandits during the first half of the 2026 CEBL season, tallying 13.9 points The Rockets' roster will be headlined by 2026 NBA Draft selection Bruce Thornton (31st overall), who will begin NBA Summer League play on July 10 with scheduled games running through July 16. The Bandits have placed Kopp on its Reserve Roster in order for him to participate in NBA Summer League play while also retaining his CEBL rights, with the option to return to the club at the conclusion of his commitments.
The Vancouver Bandits failed to hold a fourth-quarter lead as they lost to the struggling Calgary Surge. Hosting the Surge on Envision Financial Court at Langley Events Centre on Sunday afternoon as part of their Indigenous Heritage Game, the Bandits failed to make a single field goal in Target Score Time – settling for just three free throws – as they fell 92-84 to the Surge. Calgary led 83-81 heading into Target Score Time. It was the second consecutive loss for Vancouver and a fourth defeat in six games as they fell to 9-6 and second place in the Canadian Elite Basketball League’s Western Conference. Calgary picked up just their second win of the season at 2-14. Vancouver had a great opening 10 minutes as they put up 33 points in the first quarter. But from there, the offence slogged, scoring just 51 points the rest of the way. “We’re working on that. I think getting all the guys to understand the play package, understand that, you know, we're going to be playing with different lineups. And when we do, what are the best plays to run with those lineups,” said Bandits interim head coach Rans Brempong. “We're still working to get comfortable. I think that's a big thing that we just need to clean up and we just got to continue to understand and work on our pace.” For Calgary, the victory was a nice reward for a team which has been close in its last few games. “When they went on their runs, we had to just maintain our composure, not getting too up or getting too down, just staying solid,” said Surge coach Dave Deaveiro. “I thought we fought through that, and every time we needed to get a bucket, we got a bucket. Every time we needed to get a stop, we got to stop it. We just stayed solid throughout.” And that was clear down the stretch when Calgary held Vancouver without a field goal on five consecutive possessions. “Tremendous effort. That was about willpower. We talk about imposing our will on the other team, especially in target time, where it has been other teams have been imposing their will on us. Today, I thought we did a little bit of that ourselves,” Deaveiro said. Another key was sharing the ball as the Surge finished with 27 assists on their 35 field goals. “We started swinging the ball twice, attacking from the corners, and that opened up a lot of options for our offense. So I just think when the ball started moving, we really took off,” Deaveiro said. Jarkel Joiner and Lloyd Pandi led the Banders with 16 points apiece with Tyrell Samuel and Tevin Brown adding 15 and 14 points, respectively. Calgary’s Adderson Pattison led all scorers with 19 followed by Mathieu Kamba’s 17. The Bandits now embark on a three-game, five-day road trip with stops in Saskatoon (July 7), Calgary (July 9) and Edmonton (July 11). The team’s next home game is July 17 against the Montreal Alliance as they celebrate Country Night. Tip-off is set for 7:00pm.
The Vancouver Bandits have announced that Kyle Julius has stepped down as head coach to accept a head coaching position in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Julius, who has been an integral part of the organization's success since 2020, will remain with the club as general manager for the remainder of the 2026 season. The Bandits organization fully supports Julius in this next chapter of his career, with the opportunity to lead at the CBA level exemplifying the Bandits as the top development organization in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) for both players and coaches. A two-time CEBL Coach of the Year (2024, 2025), Julius guided the Bandits to two CEBL Finals appearances in 2020 and 2024 while leading the team to the postseason in each of his five seasons at the helm. In 2025, he propelled the Bandits to a .792 winning percentage (19-5), the highest by any CEBL club across a full season. "I want to thank our tremendous coaches, president Dylan Kular, our ownership group Kevin Dhaliwal, Bryan Slusarchuk, and Milan Mann, the entire Bandits organization, our players, and the incredible fans for everything we have built together over the past seven seasons. Coaching the Vancouver Bandits has been one of the greatest experiences of my career. Together, we established a culture built on energy, effort, accountability, and player development. I am incredibly proud of what we accomplished on and off the court, but even more proud of the relationships that were built along the way. This opportunity to become a head coach in the CBA is one that is very important for my family and my career and, while it is difficult to leave a place that has meant so much to us, I believe it is the right next step. I will always be grateful to everyone who believed in me and supported our journey. I will be cheering for the Bandits from afar and wish the organization nothing but continued success. Vancouver will always hold a special place in my heart,” said Julius. Julius’ relentless commitment to building a championship culture transformed the Bandits into the CEBL's premier organization, earning its status as a true destination for world-class talent and top basketball development. The Bandits have advanced players to NBA two-way contracts directly following their time with the club in each of the past three seasons, more than any other CEBL organization. "Kyle has become family. He believed in this organization and poured his heart into building something special here. His vision, passion, and commitment to developing players and people have set a standard that will define the Bandits for years to come. Beyond wins, he gave us a foundation built on passion, accountability, and genuine care for every person in our organization. I am grateful for every early morning meeting, every late-night phone call, and every moment we shared chasing this dream together. This isn't goodbye; we will be cheering louder than anyone when he succeeds in China and beyond in the next chapters of his career,” said team president Dylan Kular. Off the court, Julius participated in the Bandits' youth sports development efforts primarily through the Bandits Community Foundation School Tour. Since 2023, the free-of-charge initiative saw Julius support training and skill development directly with nearly 200 school teams across British Columbia. In addition, through the Bandits Community Foundation, Julius has hosted countless youth skill clinics and coaching seminars with athletes and volunteer coaches across the province. In a corresponding move, the Bandits have appointed Lead Assistant Coach Ransford Brempong as Head Coach for the remainder of the 2026 CEBL season. A former Canadian Senior Men's National Team member, Brempong has represented Canada at the highest level for eight years. He also played professionally for six years in Europe and was a standout NCAA DI player at Western Carolina University, where he graduated as both the program’s and conference's all-time leader in blocked shots, a record that still stands today. "The Vancouver Bandits have high expectations for our roster, and I am excited to lend my decades of experience and skills developed at the collegiate, international, and national team levels to help our players get better and to achieve success this summer,” said Brempong. Fans will have an opportunity to connect with Julius in August after he returns from training camp in China, with details to be announced in the coming weeks.
LATEST VIDEO
Highlights of the Vancouver Bandits against the Mamba on May 14, 2026.
A message from Vancouver Bandits head coach and general manager Kyle Julius on the 2025 season and thoughts on the CEBL Western Conference Semifinal.
Highlights of the Vancouver Bandits against the Calgary Surge on August 16th, 2025.
Highlights of the Vancouver Bandits against the Winnipeg Sea Bears on August 3rd, 2025.