Four years after the Halifax Hurricanes folded from the National Basketball League of Canada, the Halifax Hoopers look to revitalize the basketball scene in Nova Scotia.
The Hoopers will play their home-opener in front of hungry fans at the Zatzman Sportsplex on April 18, 2025. Halifax will play in The Basketball League, a 37-team league which plays throughout North America in cities who traditionally do not have NBA teams. Head coach and general manager of the Hoopers, Augy Jones, said the league is one step below the NBA’s affiliate G League.
Jones and management looked back at lessons learned from the failed basketball teams of the past, and made sure this iteration of professionals will feature more local talent. Jones said the Halifax Windjammers brought in 10 to 11 Americans when they debuted in 1991. This recipe, Jones said, fails, as international professional teams are predominantly made up of regional talents.
Players from Atlantic University Sport (AUS) such as University of Prince Edward Island alumnus Tyler Scott make up the roster of the Hoopers, along with players from Toronto like Shakwon Barrett.
“We started to build chemistry and character,” Jones said. “That’s been our number one thing. Having character[ful], mature, professional guys has been our focus.”
Building on Halifax’s basketball community
While the Halifax Hurricanes and Windjammers weren’t able to keep their doors open, it’s not because there are no avid basketball fans. The AUS basketball championship garners a large crowd of diehard basketball fans cheering on student athletes. When the U SPORTS men’s basketball Final 8 championship returned to Halifax in 2023, attendance reached a record with more than 40,000 fans packing the Scotiabank Centre.
When looking at the community, the Hoopers wanted to focus on the next generation of basketball, with Jones saying that it is a responsibility of a professional team to make sure the young people find their way to the gym. So they partnered with Basketball Nova Scotia and Metro Basketball Association to bring youth basketball teams to see their product.
“We want young kids to dream and see it,” Jones said.
The Hoopers held an identification camp at Dalhousie University with more than 30 players giving it their all, hoping to make the roster. Jones said some players told him they were just happy to have the opportunity to try out for a professional basketball team, and get a chance to show off their game.
“At the highest level you want to be a franchise who is open to local dreams and local abilities,” Jones said. “We’re going to continue to do that.”
Jones said they approached local, one time NBA players Nate Darling and Lindell Wigginton, as well as Dalhousie University standout and European professional player Keevan Veinoit, with the goal of having an authentic Nova Scotian team.
Jones’s resumé speaks for itself, with nine years of coaching at the U SPORTS level and back to back national championships with St. Francis Xavier University. But he said the reason why he is the person to lead Halifax basketball is because he is a mentor beyond the court. He said it is his connection to the community and his mentorship of young men which make him the man for the job.
“The role of the basketball coach is blown out of proportion,” Jones said. “You’re not that important and your x’s and o’s aren’t that important. It’s how you relate to the gentlemen that you’re bringing in.”
Shakwon Barrett
Shakwon Barrett was a standout in highschool at Tech Academy in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. where he was recruited by the likes of the University of Michigan and the University of Arkansas. However, he elected to continue his basketball career at Tulane University in New Orleans. The guard averaged 3.9 points per game in two seasons before finishing his college career at Tennessee State University.
Barrett said it was all a build up to playing for the Hoopers.
“Playing division one basketball was a dream of mine,” Barrett said. “It was a learning experience that helped me prepare what’s going to come and what we’re going to do in Halifax this year.”
He said he just felt a connection to the team and was pitched to build something long term, something he was excited to do in setting a new team’s culture. He said the experience so far has been family oriented, calling it “all for one and one for all,” which echoed coach Jones’s sentiments.
“I had childhood teammates who came to Halifax and told me about the love and the passion this city and town has for basketball,” Barrett said. “I’m just excited to be a part of the rebirth.”
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