Express Bring in NBA Talent for Exhibition

By Ryan Blevins

 

A local professional basketball team will be competing against NBA talent next month and donating proceeds to a local charity.

The Windsor Express of the National Basketball League of Canada will be playing the newly formed Raptors 905 of the NBA’s Developmental League on Nov. 5. The exhibition game will be held at the Windsor Family Credit Union Centre and tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Mississauga will be home to the Raptors 905 in what will be their inaugural season after the city’s NBL Canada team, the Mississauga Power, was absorbed by the NBA’s D-League.

Transition to Betterness is a local non-profit organization that works to ensure comfort for patients and families living with cancer and other diseases and has partnered with the Windsor Express for the event and half the proceeds made in ticket sales for the game will be donated to the charity.

While the game is an exhibition, members of the organization are relishing the opportunity to showcase the team’s brand against NBA-caliber talent. Vice President of Basketball Operations Bill Jones has been with the team since its inception in 2012 and said this game benefits the Express a great deal.

“It’s about branding the Windsor Express Basketball. What we’ve done in our three short years here is we qualified for the playoffs, went to the semi-finals our first year and then won in the championship the next two years. Now, to be able to create our brand and say we played against an NBA affiliate is something that makes our brand look good,” Jones said.

Not only does the game impact basketball fans locally, but it also effects people and families who rely on Transition to Betterness to assist them while fighting cancer. Each general admission ticket sold for this game will cost $5 and sitting court side will cost fans $10.

Transition to Betterness Fund Development Co-ordinator Melissa Iarusso said she was thrilled when the Express reached out to her organization in an attempt to make a difference in the community.

“The team approached us (saying) that they have the exciting opportunity to play NBA D-League team Raptors 905 on November 5 and wanted to work with T2B so that half of all proceeds would support our organization. Of course we were thrilled to have this opportunity presented to us and we’ve been working ever since to come up with ideas to make this a must-attend event,” Iarusso said.

In addition to the on-court action, the game will include a half time show, 50/50 raffle supporting T2B and family friendly activities. Before the two teams square off a special pre-game event featuring former Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment president Richard Peddie will be held discussing his new book, 21 Leadership Lessons.

According to Jones, the average attendance for home games at the WFCU Centre is roughly 1,100 fans. Each of the team’s first three seasons has seen a spike in both attendance and overall ticket sales. Season ticket holder Kurt Ridgewell, 21, has not missed a game in three years and said he is excited to see NBA talent in Windsor.

“I think it’s going to be a good way for basketball Canada to promote itself. I expect the Express to compete for sure after winning back-to-back championships,” Ridgewell said.

Windsor has the unique opportunity this year of being the only NBL Canada team to host an NBA level team in their home venue. While Mississauga is currently the only NBA D-League team located in Canada, Jones said NBA D-League basketball may not be out of the question if the league is ever looking to put another team north of the boarder.

“We are putting our best foot forward in terms of showing that we are a good organization. We’ve got good players, so if an NBA team is interested in bringing another D-League team to Canada then we want to show that we are a capable franchise,” said Jones

The Windsor Express play their second exhibition game at the St. Clair College SportsPlex Dec. 13 against the Lima Express of Lima, Ohio and the Midwest Professional Basketball Association.