Canadian Men’s National Team History: 1982 - 1994

JAMES NAISMITH, THE FATHER OF BASKETBALL WAS ALSO A CANADIAN

Despite not achieving any significant medals in major competitions during this time, the Canadian men’s national team managed to qualify for every tournament excluding the 1992 Olympics (as well as being automatically qualified for the 1994 World Championships as hosts): 

1982 World Championships (held in Columbia) – The Canadians finished a respectable 6^th place, with future national team head coach and current Toronto Raptors coach Jay Triano finishing the sixth highest point producer at 18.5 PPG.  That team also included current national team coach Leo Rautins, future NBAer Bill Wennington, and national team veteran Eli Pasquale. 

1984 Olympics (held in Los Angeles) – Missing the Soviet Union among others, Canada just missed the medals and placed 4^th overall.  Led by 25 points from Jay Triano and 20 points from Gerald Kazanowski, the Canadians beat Italy 78-72 to advance to the semi-finals, where they lost 79-59 to a US team led by future dream team members Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing and Chris Mullin.  They then lost to Yugoslavia 88-82 (behind 37 from Drazen Dalipagic) to miss out on the bronze medal.  Jay Triano led the team with 15 PPG.

1986 World Championships (held in Spain) – After advancing past the first round with a 4-1 record, Canada could not compete with the top teams and finished in 8^th place.  The team was again led by Jay Triano with 17.1 PPG

1988 Olympics (held in South Korea) – Advancing to the quarterfinals, Canada ran into a powerhouse Yugoslavia team once again, losing 95-73 and eventually finishing 6^th.  For the fourth straight tournament, Jay Triano led the team with 16 PPG, while Karl Tilleman had games of 29 and 37 points to finish second with 11.88 PPG. 

1990 World Championships (held in Argentina) – Missing Jay Triano from the team, Canada struggled at this tournament, not making it out of the first round and finishing 11^th.  The team included veterans Eli Pasquale and Gerald Kazanowski, as well as youngsters such as future NBAer Rick Fox.

1994 World Championships (held in Toronto and Hamilton) – Led by Rick Fox (16.3 PGG) and Kory Hallas (14 PPG) and including former NBAer Mike Smrek, Canada’s lack of size could not compete with top teams Croatia, Russia and Greece, resulting in a disappointing 7^th place finish at home.  This tournament was also the international debut of future 2-time NBA MVP Steve Nash, who was still attending Santa Clara University at the time. 

Nick Ruzich, Canadian correspondent

Previous articles by Nick:

An Introduction