x
Breaking News
More () »

Hampton men's team heads north of the border for exhibition games in Canada

The Pirates will spend this week taking on national teams in Quebec.

HAMPTON, Va. — It's hard to believe, but the first college basketball practices get underway in just over three months. The Hampton Pirates will be among them. This week the team is trying something a little different and heading north of the border for exhibition games in Canada.

Before they left, they got in another workout against each other in Holland Hall on campus then heading to Quebec. "It's something to build for", says guard Russell "Deuce" Dean. "We've never played a national team or a professional team, so going to Canada is giving us a new look."

Forward, Jordan Nesbitt felt it was something bigger. "This is a bond. A brotherhood that's going to last forever", he said.

For players like Luc Therrien, it's a homecoming of sorts. He's from Vancouver, British Columbia which is nearly 3,000 miles across the country. "No matter who we play, I know a lot of the guys", he says. "It's going to be a lot of people I've known, grown up and playing against so it'll definitely be interesting."

Therrien can brag, because there are at least three prominent Canadians playing basketball in the NBA. "We've got Andrew Wiggins (Warriors), Jamal Murray (Nuggets), and (jokingly) not in the media for basketball, Tristan Thompson (Bulls). He's got his own thing going on."

Before You Leave, Check This Out