Cage Talk with Sunday Eniojukan
FROZEN HOOPS "If you had to pick the Top 10 Canadian basketball players of all time
who would they be? Or at least to your knowledge who would be the Top 10?"
SUNDAY:
My List would be from one to 10: Steve Nash, Jammal Magloire, Leo Rautins,
Trevor Williams, Greg Francis, Rick Fox, Emerson Thomas , Martin Keane, J.J. Brade and Micheal Meeks
FROZEN HOOPS: On www.frozenhoops.com we have compiled a list of 330 Canadian players who will be in the running for the Top 100 of
all time. Your name is on this list. How does that make you feel? Do you have any names that might be added to the list?
SUNDAY: I’m quite honored to make the list.
It always feels good to be recognized for your efforts in any endeavor. I also appreciate the website as it is another medium
in which basketball is promoted in Canada. The more the merrier! You pretty much have the names of all the guys I thought
about.
FROZEN HOOPS: What is your highlight to date in the sport of basketball?
SUNDAY: In my freshman year at Fairfield University (CT.) we played
UNC in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament East Region. We gave Dean Smith and his players a good scare as we
held the lead the whole game until the closing minutes.
FROZEN HOOPS: What is needed to make the sport of basketball better in Canada?
Several pro hoop leagues in Canada have failed...what is needed to have a successful pro league in Canada?
SUNDAY: I played in the Ontario Professional Basketball Association
this summer but the league failed in a matter of weeks. I feel that the biggest reason we don’t have a successful pro
hoops league in Canada is that corporate sponsorship is lacking. Most Canadian corporations won’t invest a substantial
amount in a professional basketball league because they haven’t been presented with a strong enough business case for
such investments. When companies consider investing (spending) money they only want to hear one thing… "a relatively
quick and guaranteed Return-On-Investment". Their fiduciary duties lay with creating profits for their stockholders or owners,
not to a goodwill promotion of basketball in Canada through financially backing a league. Therefore, if no good opportunity
to profit is presented…they are not interested. Some believe that there isn’t enough of a basketball fan base
in Canada to justify huge corporate investments in a league. That there is a lack of the requisite fan base to guarantee the
sustainability of a pro league in this country. I don’t know enough about the issue to make any credible comments about
the validity of this view. I, however, find this opinion antiquated. I do know that as long as corporations don’t take
the risks of investing a large amount to back a pro league (even in owning some of the teams in the league), successful pro
league basketball in Canada might remain just a dream for those entrepreneurs and basketball fans who love the game. And it’s
such a shame because basketball was born in Canada.
FROZEN HOOPS: How would you describe yourself as a player?
SUNDAY: I would describe myself as an aggressive player who relayed more on his athleticism
than offensive skills to accomplish what I have accomplished in my basketball career. I was known for my rebounding and defensive
skills.
