EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Stingers of the Canadian Elite Basketball League announced Wednesday that General Manager and Head Coach Barnaby Craddock is stepping down from both positions effective immediately.



Assistant Coach Jermaine Small will assume both positions. Craddock will stay on through Saturday’s game at Fraser Valley in the role of assistant coach to support Small and the team through a transition period.



“The CEBL has brought a high level of professional basketball to Edmonton and Canada, and it has been a privilege to play a part in ushering the Stingers into Edmonton,” said Craddock. “It has, however, become apparent to me over the past two months that despite my best intentions and efforts, the workload of the Stingers head coach and general manager role is not something I can adequately complete while also fulfilling my duties to my family and University of Alberta Golden Bear Athletics. I will step away from the Edmonton Stingers so they can get someone in place that will be capable of making the necessary commitment to lead the Stingers forward into the exciting future of the CEBL.”



The Stingers are currently 4-4 in the CEBL standings, just two-and-a-half games out of first place. Their next game is Saturday in Abbotsford against the winless Fraser Valley Bandits.

“I would like to thank Barnaby for an outstanding job in establishing a foundation for a culture of success with the Stingers,” said team president and COO Lee Genier. “We’re disappointed to lose him, but we do appreciate the significant demands that come with simultaneously running basketball operations for us and the University of Alberta, where he leads one of the top U SPORTS programs in the country.



“We are grateful we have someone of Jermaine Small’s ability to take over the Stingers as we work to maintain a spot in the postseason tournament and strive to finish on top of the regular season standings,” Genier added. “Jermaine has worked alongside some of Canada’s leading head coaches, Roy Rana at Ryerson, Steph Barrie at Queen’s, and now Barnaby Craddock in Edmonton. He is ready and qualified to lead our club for the second half of the season and into the playoffs.”



Following three seasons as an assistant coach at Ryerson University, Small spent five years as lead assistant at Queen’s University. He coached the Canadian Select Team that competed in China, and the last three summers was a head coach in the Crown League in Toronto. Small played collegiately at Houghton College in New York.



“I’d like to thank the Stingers organization for this opportunity to build on the foundation that Barnaby Craddock has built for our team,” said Small. “I appreciate that Barnaby brought me in as an assistant coach prior to the season, and I’ve been fortunate to learn from him. I’m also grateful that he will continue to be a resource for me throughout this transition.”

