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A hometown basketball veteran is now leading the hometown professional team.
“It’s super special and I take a lot of pride in it,” Mike Raimbault said.
Raimbault is the long-time University of Winnipeg men’s basketball head coach and is entering his first year as the Winnipeg Sea Bears head coach and general manager. He spent the last three years as assistant coach for the Sea Bears.
“It’s an absolute honour, obviously, to be a part of an organization from any standpoint as an assistant or the head coach,” Raimbault said.
He’s not the only local face returning to the Sea Bears.
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On the first day of Sea Bears training camp on Thursday, Winnipeggers Mason Kraus and Kyler Filewich were back in teal and black and looking to quickly mesh with the new squad.
“Every day we have in here, we have to bring our best attitude and effort to build that chemistry, get in game shape and get ready to play in the next 10 days or so,” Filewich said.
Winnipegger Emmanuel Akot is also expected to return this year.
As for international players, former Canadian Elite Basketball League MVP Teddy Allen is back with the Sea Bears after playing for Winnipeg in 2024.
“I know a lot of these guys. Played with them or played against them before. Great group of guys. A lot of energy and experience. The young guys are getting after it,” Allen said.
This will be the Sea Bears’ fourth season in Winnipeg.
Adam Wedlake, the executive director of Basketball Manitoba, says the team has had a massive impact on the community and on registration in that time.
“In that first year, we experienced over 30 per cent growth in our numbers just in one year,” Wedlake said. “Since then, we have been able to see some growth on top of that but we have been able to sustain and to maintain that growth.”
The Sea Bears’ first game is in Edmonton on May 9.
They’ll return home a week later, bringing a hometown feel and local inspiration to Canada Life Centre.
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