Underdogs: With a new roster and coach, the Bandits are establishing a formula for team success
By Contributing Bandits Writer: Cassidy Kannemeyer • August 1, 2020
For three quarters basketball often resembles a prize fight. Both fighters trade haymakers in an attempt to land that elusive knockout blow to end the fight.
Typically, there is no knockout “shot” in basketball, but with the CEBL utilizing the Elam Ending, every CEBL Summer Series game has seen its own game winner.
Choreographed actions designed to find your opponent’s weakness can help a team build a lead, but no lead is safe in the Elam Ending format, which is specifically designed for comebacks and thrilling finishes.
The fourth quarter is a different animal. Every team needs a closer; a player who can get their shot no matter what defence is in place. Last season, the Bandits struggled to find their closing formula, often relying on the hot hand of that particular game to finish the job.
This strategy produced limited success and the Bandits struggled to create great looks down the stretch of games. Fast forward to this season and the current rendition of the Bandits has a clutch component built into its DNA - something head coach and general manager Kyle Julius has been able to harness from his players at every level that he’s coached at.
All of Julius’ pro teams have been built on the foundations of hard work, selflessness and an underdog mentality. With that being said, this team on paper appears to have a similar makeup to his teams of the past.
Julius has enlisted players that he has won with before, such as Kyle Johnson, Junior Cadougan and Marcus Capers. Each was a member of the London Lightning team that took the title in 2017, and each has brought a two-way intensity to the Bandits that has helped the team get off to a 2-1 start to the CEBL Summer Series.
Across the CEBL, rosters feature a vast array of Team Canada members, NBA G League stars and imports with NBA caliber size. Preseason pundits labelled the Bandits as “undersized,” but Fraser Valley has shown an ability to punch above its weight thanks to the length and athleticism of its players.
The Bandits have two players that have built their pro careers around their ability to isolate and score. Cameron Forte makes his living scoring on the block. Screens and straight rim runs allow him to establish his position in his office in the painted area. A natural lefty, Forte is a wide bodied post player that has proven to be a headache to guard. Remind anyone of Zach Randolph? Randolph could get the ball anywhere near the rim and turn to hook the ball in from tough angles. Forte has a similar skillset.
With his soft touch and his ability to shoot out to 18-feet, Forte has emerged as an elite scoring threat both early and at the end of games. Currently, Forte leads the team in scoring and rebounding with 24.3 points per game and 8.7 rebounds per game.
The offensive load doesn’t rest on the shoulders of Forte alone. For three quarters the Bandits have several capable playmaking guards that are able to create their own shot and penetrate at will. Both Marcus Capers and last year’s CEBL assist king Marek Klassen have managed the offensive load for parts of the game, but the Bandits also have other members in their backcourt that are capable of creating mismatches.
This is someone who can consistently beat their man and get buckets. Someone who on any given night will have the opposing team’s primary wing defender and is still able to produce.
Kyle Johnson at 6-foot-5 has the size over smaller guards to shoot over the top and the quickness against bigger defenders to gain a slight advantage with his speed and strength.
Johnson throughout his career has consistently averaged double digits in scoring and has been counted on to be an isolation scorer.
Johnson had an outstanding first game against the Edmonton Stingers, scoring 19 points and hauling in six rebounds while also dishing out five assists.
Push offs, leaners, fadeaways, post-ups, jab steps - you name it, Johnson has it in his toolkit. He has the ability to make tough shots under duress and take on bigs at the rim. Ultimately Johnson’s value could be as the secondary scorer to Forte. His ability to be a primary scorer will depend on how often he gets to the free throw line and how often he can shake the opposing team’s shutdown defender.
Johnson exited last Tuesday’s game against Saskatchewan after landing on the foot of Robinson Opong. Johnson sat out Thursday’s game against Ottawa and is hopeful to return for today’s tilt on national TV against Hamilton at 10:30 a.m. PT on your local CBC channel.
The Bandits’ ability to score and defend the ball will determine how far this team can go after a hot start to the CEBL Summer Series campaign. Both Forte and Johnson will be relied on heavily regardless of what their role is.
LATEST NEWS
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.
The Vancouver Bandits seemed destined for an improbable comeback. Trailing by nine points entering Target Score Time, the Bandits — fueled largely by a trio of 3-pointers from Tevin Brown — rallied to pull even with the Edmonton Stingers, leaving both teams one point away from victory. Bandits forward Mychal Mulder came up with what appeared to be a huge blocked shot. But while the loose ball was still in the air, Miller Kopp was whistled for a foul, sending Taye Donald to the free-throw line with two chances to win the game. Donald needed just one, sinking his first free throw to give the visiting Stingers a 94-93 victory in Canadian Elite Basketball League action on Friday night on Envision Financial Court at Langley Events Centre. The Stingers improve to 7-7 while Vancouver sits at 9-5, good for a share of top spot in the Western Conference. “I think that we played with the right intensity and aggression in stints, but it was definitely not 40 minutes. And that was my message to the guys,” said Vancouver coach Rans Brempong. “You have got to come ready to play. It doesn’t matter the record, anyone can beat anyone in this league. “I appreciate the fight (we showed), but at the end of the day, it’s an ‘L’ in the column.” The Bandits led for much of the first half but held just a one-point advantage at the break before the Stingers built their lead to as many as 13 in the third quarter. “First of all, it was a great win. Most people don't know we traveled today on a plane. We got here, we ate, and we stuck together, so it was a great win on the road,” said Edmonton’s Stanley Davis Jr. The victory was a fourth straight for the Stingers and gives them a 2-1 edge in the season series over Vancouver with one head-to-head meeting still to go. “We didn’t play very well to open the season, so every game is big,” said Stingers coach Jordan Baker. “We’re trying to fight for a home playoff spot and obviously Vancouver’s been the cream of the crop in the West for the last handful of years, so for us to come in this building – it’s not an easy place to play and it’s not an easy place to win – so credit to our guys.” Tyrese Samuel led Vancouver with 20 points and 12 rebounds, while Jarkel Joiner and Brown each added 19 points and Kopp finished with 14. Edmonton's bench outscored Vancouver's reserves 47-16. Davis came off the bench to lead the Stingers with 18 points, while Nick Hornsby and Donald each had 16 and Emmanuel Bandoumel had 15.  Vancouver returns to action Sunday (July 5) when it hosts the Calgary Surge in its Indigenous Heritage Game. Tip-off is set for 12:30 p.m. on Envision Financial Court at Langley Events Centre.
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.