NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. (CUP) — In the midst of the hustle and bustle of returning students, 12 men are pushing their way towards creating a legacy and claiming bragging rights for another year. During the first week of January, Douglas College played host to the Canadian National Wheelchair Basketball team’s national training camp, where for five days, the team prepared for the upcoming 2006 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships that will be held in Amsterdam this coming July.
After gold medal performances in the Sydney and Athens Paralympics games, Team Canada is currently the number one ranked team in world-ahead of the Australians and the Americans–and this doesn’t sit well with our neighbours south of the border.
The rivalry began back in 2002 when Team USA defeated Team Canada in the 2002 World Championships’ semi-final in Osaka, Japan.
“It took them into triple overtime and it was one of the two times they have been defeated in the past six years,” forward Adam Lancia said. “We have to have a really bad game and they need to be hitting a lot of threes in order to win,” he added.
One of the reasons that the Canadian men’s wheelchair basketball team has been so successful is because of the depth of their talent. “We play all twelve guys and all of us contribute,” said David Eng, who is currently completing his graduate degree in Exercise Sciences at the University of Texas-Arlington.
Another reason for Canada’s success is because in Joey Johnson and Pat Anderson they possess two of the best players in the game. These two goliaths of the sport display an exceptional level of athletic ability that tends to complement each other’s game. It is plain and simple-Jonhnson is huge. Standing at 6’2″ and squeezing the scale at 230 lbs, his “Shaq” power and strength is athletic and solid with a surprisingly soft touch from as deep as 25 feet. He can post you up and take you outside.
Anderson’s physical stature is that of the stereotypical basketball player; with a 6’9″ wing span and standing at 6’4″, the athletically built 190 lb phenom has lighting quick reflexes and uncanny wheelchair agility.
“He’s definitely something to watch,” said veteran guard Jaime Borisoff. “He’s the best in the game.”
The well spoken native of Fergus, Ontario, Anderson first realized his love for basketball in 1990. As a talented junior, his game escalated quickly, earning him a National membership since 1998. He has never looked back.
When asked about his billing by peers and the governing bodies of wheelchair basketball, he casually said, “I guess I realized when I was about 18 or 19 years old.” The tone of the statement was very “matter of fact.” There’s no arrogance with this guy, no cockiness but he’s the type that will look you directly in the eye and tell you with a straight face, “You can’t play me.”
Like any elite team athlete at the top of his game, he must consciously make the decision of when to pass or take the shot himself. “Of course, there are times when I feel maybe I didn’t assert my game enough…. However, there are also times when you must realize that, as a player, the team’s advantage is not always with me scoring,” he said.
“It can also depend on what the opponent is giving you. For instance, the Dutch tend to pack in the key forcing you to make outside shots. I can live with that because I know I can make those shots. Then there are other teams that will spread their defence allowing either myself, Joey, Adam or David to get on the inside.”
When asked if it all becomes too much for him, he ponders the thought carefully, his eyes searching downward as if he was looking inside himself and wondering whether he should show a sign of weakness. Careful and precisely, he answered, “Sometimes it’s challenging.”
The words are calculating and concise, just like the shot that has been dropped on many opponents domes over his illustrious career.
For the first time in his career, Pat said he’s seen a “leveling” in his game. Even though he never used the ‘P’ word, his statement whispered what no athlete at the top of his game wants to hear…Plateau.
“I mean, every year I would see some kind of improvements in some part of my game,” he said. “However, lately I feel that I have been coming in doing the same things.”
With two Paralympics gold medals and a handful of MVP awards, he says he could walk away from it all and he would feel fulfilled with what he has accomplished. “I’ve won a couple of gold medals and have played professional for awhile. I would have no problem feeling happy with what I have accomplished,” he said.
For Anderson and Team Canada, the next tournament is February in Osaka, Japan. There, they will match up again with the U.S. and again, he stated reassuringly, “we will be successful.”
