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If you wanta preview of what the faces of children (and some grown-ups) will look like as they begin to play with the gifts they’ve received on Christmas morning, maybe you should check out Steve Marcus Sunday afternoon at Mile One Centre.

That’s when Marcus takes the wrapping off the St. John’s Edge and shows off what is very much a brand-new team.

“I’m really excited. It’s an opportunity to show the city of St. John’s and our fans what we’ve been working on since the off-season,” said Marcus, now officially the head coach of the Edge, who will take on the Moncton Magic in an exhibition game 2 p.m. Sunday at Mile One.

“It’s been a long off-season, but we’re happy to be back at it and back in Mile One, and we’re happy to show the people here a team they can be proud of, on and off the court.

“I know we’re proud of the team we put together.”

This will be a rematch of last season’s National Basketball League of Canada final which Moncton won in a four-game sweep, but while the Magic return to St. John’s with the majority of their players from that series, the Edge team that will hit the court tonight will be entirely different.

St. John’s does have two players — Canadians Murphy Burnatowski and Junior Cadougan — on the roster who were with the club in the playoffs, but both suffered minor injuries during training camp this past week and Marcus doesn’t plan to play them Sunday.

That means all 12 players on the court for St. John’s will be newcomers to the team, although Noel Moffatt has some familiarity, since he’s a St. John’s native who once played for the Memorial University Sea-Hawks.

“We think we’ve put together a roster that’s extremely athletic and extremely versatile, guys that can play multiple positions and guard multiple positions, guys who can get up and down the court at Mile One and keep the fans on their feet.” Edge head coach Steve Marcus

Marcus, who had been the interim coach during the spring playoff run before being confirmed to the permanent job over the summer, is very much responsible for constructing this team.

“Obviously, there’s a little nervousness because it’s your first time putting it all together and you want it to be super successful,” said Marcus.

“They’re all players Jeff (assistant coach Jeff Morrison) and I have known before, guys we’ve had past dealings with, or it’s a matter of us knowing people who have dealt with them and recommended them to us.

“We think we’ve put together a roster that’s extremely athletic and extremely versatile, guys that can play multiple positions and guard multiple positions, guys who can get up and down the court at Mile One and keep the fans on their feet.”

When asked to name a player he was particularly glad to introduce, Marcus had a ready answer.

“I think it’s Karrington Ward,” he said, referring to the Chicago native who played for the Windy City Bulls, the affiliateof their NBA namesakes in the G League the past two seasons.

“He’s a guy that both Jeff, when he was with the Island Storm, and I tried to over the past two years. When he became available this October, it was a no-brainer for us to bring him in. He’s an unbelievable kid and an unbelievable athlete.

“In fact I think he’s could be the best athlete in the league —six-foot-seven, with a 41-, 42-inch vertical leap. He’s going to have some monster dunks for us this season.

“He plays the right way. He’s got long arms, big hands. He defends, block shots and is a capable three-point shooter.

“He’s going to surprise some people and to put it simply, he’s going to be fun to watch.”

St. John's Edge head coach Steve Marcus believes Karrington Ward, who played for Eastern Michigan University before two years in the NBA G League, could claim the title of being the NBLC's most athletic player. — photo via St. John's Edge

The Magic have seven players back from their championship team, plus guard Maurice Jones, who started last season with Edge.

“They have a very strong roster again. Looking back at it, maybe we should have brought in a different team for this game.” laughed Marcus. “But really, I think it’s going to be fun.

“Tickets are available at $10 each and it will be well worth it, plus you can sit wherever you want. But whatever seat you’re in, I think you are going to like what you see.”



brendan.mccarthy@thetelegram.com

Twitter: @telybrendan