Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls visited Vancouver as an NBA city during the Grizzlies short life here, yet MJ almost paid a private visit to a B.C. high school hoops powerhouse a back in 1990. (ESPN photo graphic)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

The Last Dance, Vancouver style! Thirty years later, the story behind Michael Jordan’s planned 1990 trip to Richmond High

RICHMOND — Cell phones had not yet gone mainstream, and the internet was about a year away from its official launch.The year was 1990, although that might not seem like so long ago to some, the world was still an innocent enough outpost that picking up the phone and making one call could still get […]

Bill Stebbings (third right) is flanked by former players (left to right) Eron Labadie, Bill Richards, Charles Hotel, David Hughes, Bob Hoy and John Christie at the school's Wall of Fame induction ceremony this past December. (Photo property of Seaquam Seahawks athletics 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Bill Stebbings 1949-2020: The architect of Seaquam Seahawks boys basketball always saw the big picture first

NORTH DELTA — He was a basketball coach who wanted the world for his players.And in the end, Bill Stebbings helped them find it by showing them that their commitment to the game was redeemable in later life in the form of wisdom and a deeper appreciation for the value of family and friends.On Tuesday, […]

Joe Enevoldson, coming off a 17-1 PacWest season with the Douglas College Royals, was last week named the new head coach of the Fraser Valley Cascades' men's team. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Enriched by a basketball heritage which not only includes the game's inventor James Naismith, but also the likes of former SFU Clan star Jay Triano (left) and the late Handsworth Royals' icon Quinn Keast, high school basketball players in the province of B.C. have plenty of inspiration with which to work on their games despite the challenges brought on by COVID-19. (Photos property of Simon Fraser Athletics and Blair.photo (Blair Shier) 2020. All Rights Reserved. Photo graphic created by Gabriel Lynn)
Feature High School University

B.C. coaches say “…basketball is going back to being about you and a hoop” How to summon your inner-Naismith in a time of social distancing

NORTH DELTA — What defines a self-made athlete?As the 2019-20 B.C. high school basketball season was coming to an end last March, just days ahead of a province-wide COVID-19 shutdown, it was certainly not a topic I spent much time pondering.Yet some two months later, I can say with great confidence that it has emerged […]

North Delta Huskies boys basketball coach Jesse Hundal speaks about teaching and inspiring during this time of global pandemic. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Varsity Letters PODCAST 05.06.20: ND Huskies coach/teacher Jesse Hundal on educating during a pandemic, the Class of 2020 and the late Brandon Bassi

NORTH DELTA — The Podcast is back. Apologies for our extended absence.   Today, we are joined by Jesse Hundal, a teacher and boys basketball coach at North Delta Secondary School.   Jesse chats openly and positively about the challenges facing both teachers and students these days as the 2019-20 academic year comes to a […]

King George's Nikola Guzina (left) is a 6-foot-8, 205-pound senior who comes to the UBC Thunderbirds as a true five-position player. (Photo by Paul Yates property of Vancouver Sports Pictures 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball University Men's Basketball

Nikola Guzina: With a versatile game that hints at shades of Conor Morgan, UBC inks multi-skilled King George Dragons’ star

VANCOUVER — Ask Nikola Guzina to talk about his rise to prominence on the hardcourt, and the standout incoming recruit of the UBC Thunderbirds proceeds to do so with a nod of thanks to the basketball gods.

A force of nature over his senior season, Centennial Centaurs' forward Dominic Parolin announced Saturday that he will play college basketball next season in the Patriot Conference at Lehigh University. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball University Men's Basketball

Dominic Parolin: Despite the challenges of recruiting, Centennial’s superstar big man finds his fit at NCAA Div. 1 Lehigh University

COQUITLAM — The world changed virtually overnight following the completion of the 2020 B.C. senior boys basketball championships on March 7.And with COVID-19 world pandemic very suddenly the new reality, Centennial senior forward Dominic Parolin quickly realized that the recruiting process he had waited years to be a part of was going to be a […]

Longtime former Brookswood Bobcats' head coach Neil Brown saw superstar 2016 grad Aislinn Konig play live six times over the course of her MVP career with the North Carolina State Wolfpack. (Photo courtesy Neil Brown)
Feature High School Girls Basketball

Neil Brown: Brookswood’s legendary ex-coach on hoops retirement, Ace Konig and the path to hardcourt enlightenment

LANGLEY — If you followed Neil Brown’s Twitter feed this past season, then you know that in retirement, one of the most decorated members of the B.C. high school basketball fraternity is enjoying the full measure of connectedness that comes with mentoring hundreds upon hundreds of student-athletes over a coaching career that has touched parts […]

Burnaby South Rebels' rising Grade 11 guard Jimmy Zaborniak will try and help his preseason No. 1-ranked team to its third B.C. Quad-A title over the past four seasons this coming March at the LEC. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca 2020. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

B.C. 4-A 2020-21 rankings: No. 1 Burnaby South treading on historic ground, we break down each of AAAA’s top 15 teams!

It goes without saying that the issues and challenges we find ourselves facing on a daily basis are of a magnitude we would never have expected earlier this month as we sat together at the Langley Events Centre to watch two weeks of B.C. high school basketball championships.And certainly, there are a lot of things […]

Duchess Park's Caleb Lyons will return for his senior season as one of the most seasoned go-to scorers in B.C. senior boys high school basketball. (Photo by Paul Yates property of Vancouver Sports Pictures 2020. All Rights Reserved)