Latest news with #CanadaBasketball
CBC
17-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
FIBA Women's 3x3 Basketball Series Amsterdam semifinals: Canada vs. Poland
Watch Canada take on Poland in the FIBA Women's 3x3 Basketball Series Amsterdam semifinals from the Netherlands.
CBC
17-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
FIBA Women's 3x3 Basketball Series Amsterdam pool B quarterfinals: Canada vs. Czech Republic
Watch Canada take on the Czech Republic in the FIBA Women's 3x3 Basketball Series Amsterdam quarterfinals from the Netherlands.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
BYU player catches attention by taking major leap toward Olympic dream
As a freshman, she torched Big 12 defenses. Now, she's turning heads on the international stage. Delaney Gibb, BYU's breakout women's basketball star, is one step closer to achieving a lifelong goal: representing Canada in the Olympics. The 5-foot-10 guard from Raymond, Alberta, has been named to the Canadian Senior Women's National Team Athlete Pool — a critical move toward earning a spot in the 2026 FIBA World Cup and ultimately, the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles. For Gibb, this isn't just another accolade — it's personal. Advertisement 'Playing for Canada Basketball has always brought me so much pride and joy,' Gibb said. 'My biggest dream has been to represent Team Canada in the Olympics.' It's easy to see why Canada Basketball came calling. In her first season with the Cougars, Gibb earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors after averaging 17.4 points, 4.1 assists, and 5.3 rebounds per game. She shot a scorching 39.5% from three, emerging as both a scorer and a floor general for BYU. Her poise under pressure, high basketball IQ, and leadership have already drawn comparisons to seasoned pros — now she'll share the court with them. The National Team Pool includes WNBA players like Bridget Carleton and other international veterans, setting a high bar for intensity, professionalism, and execution. This call-up puts Gibb among just six active college players in the senior pool — a testament to her rapid rise and Canada Basketball's confidence in her future. Advertisement With a new head coach, Nell Fortner, emphasizing commitment and culture, Gibb will spend the next year training with the senior squad and the U23 team. The goal? Germany 2026. But make no mistake — her eyes are set on the Olympics. For BYU fans, it's another reason to believe they're witnessing something special. Gibb isn't just leading the Cougars — she's becoming a name the world will soon know. Related: Top transfers and star recruits fuel BYU Final Four hopes Related: BYU legend makes major announcement about future plans
Toronto Star
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Toronto Star
Canada Basketball finds a gold-medal-winning head coach to help the national women's team over its last hurdle
It was a quick conversation but in just a few minutes Nell Fortner hit all the high points of recent Canadian women's basketball. She coached the United States at the turn of the millennium and the first name she dropped in a telephone conversation was Bev Smith, the legendary Canadian player and coach, and that her teams 'played hard, they were physical … it was going to be a really tough ball game when you played them.' Fortner worked as a broadcaster during an iconic college coaching hiatus as another era developed. 'I told Bridget (Carleton), 'I remember watching you as a sophomore at Iowa State,' I called their game against Oklahoma State. I was at that point like, 'Oh my, gosh, this kid is really, really good.' ' A few minutes later, a few more names. ' Kia Nurse, Aaliyah Edwards, both of them at UConn … Kayla Alexander, I remember her at Syracuse.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Fortner coached last winter at Georgia Tech and saw Duke's Toby Fournier up close, and Yvonne Ejim at Gonzaga. She tried to recruit Syla Swords as New York high schooler. Fortner's passport says the U.S. but her knowledge of women's basketball on the continent pays no attention to borders. And as the newest head coach of Canada Basketball's senior women's team, the 66-year-old coaching icon is anxious to help the country over a final international hurdle. Basketball Q&A: Canada Basketball's Steve Baur says women's team will build off Paris failure Expectations for Canada's women's basketball team were high heading into 2024. 'Canada's had great potential and I hope I can get it to the next level on the international level,' she said in an interview with The Star on Monday afternoon. Fortner was hired to fill a vacancy created when Victor Lapeña left the program last winter. Her staff is still be finalized but sources said long-time national stalwart Carly Clarke is expected to be on the bench. Fortner brings an impeccable resumé to a job that starts with the AmeriCup tournament in June in Chile, the beginning of the 2026 World Cup qualification process and a trip, hopefully, to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The Mississippi native coached the American team to gold medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and 1998 World Cup, amassing a 101-14 record. She was an NCAA coach of the year three times in three major conferences. She was the first head coach of the WNBA's Indiana Fever. And she has worked for years as a part-time broadcaster with ESPN. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Fortner left Georgia Tech earlier this year, tired of the NIL-portal transfer world of college basketball, and she jumped at the chance to coach Canada when women's program general manager Steve Baur reached out a couple of months ago. 'I was retiring from college coaching but I wasn't just retiring,' she said. 'I didn't know what the possibilities were out there … but I knew I didn't want to be a college coach any more. 'The amount of talent that's coming out of Canada now, it's really impressive … There's so much potential there and it's exciting, I like a challenge.' Basketball Canada Basketball tabs former Olympian Gordie Herbert to coach men's national team The job had been vacant since Brooklyn Nets coach Jordi Fernandez stepped down after the 2024 Fortner has been presented with a group of 25 women who Canada Basketball says is committed through the Los Angeles Games. It includes Carleton, Nurse, Alexander, Edwards and Ejim. There are Olympians like Sami Hill, Shaw Colley and Swords, as well. The first challenge is the 10-team AmeriCup. The top six teams earn automatic spots in the final World Cup qualification tournaments in March 2026, and the AmeriCup gold medallist gets a guaranteed spot at the 2026 World Cup in Germany. Canada hasn't won a World Cup medal since a bronze in 1986 and has never won an Olympic medal, losing in the quarterfinals in London in 2012 and Rio in 2016. 'That's a big step, it's a big hurdle,' Fortner said. 'We've got to figure that out and attack that, and that's what are goals are.'
CBC
05-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Former U.S. women's basketball head coach Fortner takes over Canada's senior squad
Nell Fortner has been named head coach of Canada's senior women's national team, Canada Basketball announced Monday. The longtime NCAA, WNBA and international coach takes over from Victor Lapeña as the program looks to rebound from a winless showing at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Fortner guided the United States to gold at the 1998 FIBA World Championship and the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, compiling a 101-14 international record. The 66-year-old from Jackson, Miss., most recently spent six seasons at Georgia Tech, leading the Yellow Jackets to three NCAA tournament appearances before announcing her retirement earlier this year. "I'm honoured to join Canada Basketball and help lead this next chapter for the senior women's national team," Fortner said in a statement. "I've followed the rise of this program for years and have great respect for the culture the organization and players are building. "This is a special group with the talent, toughness and togetherness, and they have the ability to achieve something great — I'm excited to get to work." Her hiring comes as 25 players commit to the national team through the 2026 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup. In November, players and staff set team standards around commitment, accountability and culture — a foundation that now guides the women's program, according to Canada Basketball. "This commitment represents a shared belief in what we're building and how we intend to get there," said Steve Baur, general manager and vice-president of women's high performance. "Our athletes set a clear tone for this next chapter, and we're proud to see that vision backed by such a strong group of players." Canada finished fourth at the 2022 tournament and is turning to a younger core following the retirement of several veterans. The team will compete at this summer's FIBA AmeriCup and hold a training camp in Victoria this fall. Canadian basketball star Natalie Achonwa discusses what it means to represent Canada 9 months ago Duration 1:29 The 16-year Canadian women's national team member reflects on journey at Paris 2024.
