The Ottawa BlackJacks of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) announced Friday the appointment of Osvaldo Jeanty as its first head coach. Jeanty is reunited with mentor, former coach and current BlackJacks General Manager Dave Smart, to lead basketball operations for the expansion franchise.

Born in Bel Rivière, Haiti, Jeanty immigrated with his family to Canada at the age of six, speaking only Creole. He grew up in the east end of Ottawa, where French quickly became his second language. At the age of 12, Jeanty began playing basketball in a neighborhood park and never looked back.

Jeanty attended Samuel-Genest, a small French high school in Ottawa where he would win the city championship on two occasions. During his last year at Samuel-Genest, Jeanty achieved his goal of leading the team to the city title and qualified for the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championships. He also won a Midget Developmental Program championship, played with the Under 19 Ontario provincial team, and was selected to attend the invitation-only Nike All-Canada Camp.

While he achieved great heights as a high schooler, it was his university career that made Jeanty a household name in Ottawa. He is one of the two Carleton student-athletes (Philip Scrubbs) to have captured five national championships in a team sport, and the fourth player in Canadian university history to win five U SPORTS team titles.

Under the tutelage of Dave Smart, Jeanty, a point guard, would be named to the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) All Rookie Team in his freshman year, while simultaneously helping the Carleton Ravens win their first national championship. In 2006, Jeanty would capture the Borden Ladner Gervais (BLG) Award, which is given to the Canadian university male athlete of the year. He would be the first Carleton Raven student-athlete to win this prestigious award. The Ravens would go on to win five consecutive national titles where Jeanty would be named the Final Eight championship game’s most valuable player three out of five years (2004-06).

Osvaldo played on the Canadian national men’s basketball team during the summer of 2006 and 2007 and would compete against top international men’s teams from around the world. During his second year with the Canadian national team, he represented his country at the Pan Am games in Rio de Janeiro.

He averaged 10.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists in six years of professional basketball. During his rookie season, he led the Nordlingen Giants to a ProA Championship in Germany.

Following an illustrious playing career, Jeanty would shape future basketball stars on the sidelines as a successful coach. He coached the “Guardsmen” within Ontario Basketball during the 2013-14 season. Jeanty served as head coach of Cégep de l’Outaouais basketball team between 2014 and 2016. He returned to his alma mater to serve as an assistant coach with the Carleton Ravens for three seasons (2016-19), helping the team to two more national championships and a pair of OUA titles. During Jeanty’s coaching time with the Ravens, the team lost only one league game and earned a 119-7 overall mark. Throughout his eight years as a player or coach with Carleton, Jeanty finished with a .960 (168-7) regular season league record.

Jeanty, 36, and his wife, Kyla, have two children, Cristian and Annalise. Off the court, Jeanty has used his university education to the fullest in the business world. Receiving a Bachelor of Commerce with a double concentration in Finance and Accounting, Jeanty has been a financial planner for more than six years.

On November 20, the CEBL welcomed the Ottawa BlackJacks to its roster of franchises, becoming the first expansion team to join the league. The CEBL is the only First Division Professional League partner of Canada Basketball.

Since the launch of the BlackJacks, basketball fans in the Ottawa/Gatineau region have started joining the action through the team’s first season ticket deposit drive. A $50 non-refundable deposit guarantees fans front of the line access to courtside and lower bowl tickets in the Arena at TD Place, in addition to a limited-edition Ottawa BlackJacks official New Era team T-shirt. The deposit drive ends February 4, 2020. For more information or to secure your part of Ottawa basketball history, visit www.theBlackJacks.ca or call 1-613-690-0519. Season and group tickets, along with flex packs are set to go on sale in February, while single game tickets will go on sale to the general public in March.

The BlackJacks tip off their inaugural season May 7 when they travel to St. Catharines for a date against the Niagara River Lions. The first home game is scheduled for May 14 at the Arena at TD Place against the Hamilton Honey Badgers.

All 20 regular season BlackJacks games will be streamed live on CBC Gem, CEBL TV and the Island Sports Network. Ottawa will also be part of a nationally televised broadcast as part of the CBC Game of the Week when the BlackJacks travel to Hamilton on May 30.

Quotes:

“I am happy to have Osvaldo here with us, as our first head coach. He understands what needs to be done in order to win. I have full faith that Osvaldo will work as hard as he can to bring the team where it’s supposed to be. I look forward to working with him once again.”

-Dave Smart, General Manager

Ottawa BlackJacks Professional Basketball Club

“I am honoured to accept the position of head coach for the first expansion franchise of the CEBL. I am thankful for the BlackJacks organization, as well as Dave Smart, for giving me this opportunity. I am committed to putting in all the work necessary to make 2020 an historical inaugural season and bring excitement to our amazing fans, while growing the game of basketball in our community. What the CEBL has accomplished so far is impressive, and I can’t wait to put together a roster who will compete in the league and inspire future generations of basketball stars. “

- Osvaldo Jeanty, Head Coach

Ottawa BlackJacks Professional Basketball Club

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For more information, contact:

Marika Guérin

Manager, Communications and Events

Ottawa BlackJacks Professional Basketball Club

[email protected]

About the Canadian Elite Basketball League

The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) is a new basketball experience that features world-class professional basketball in a fan-friendly entertainment environment across seven cities in Canada. The 2019 inaugural season saw more than 100 Canadian and international players take to the court, culminating with the Saskatchewan Rattlers earning the first CEBL championship trophy. CEBL players come from NBA G-League clubs, top NCAA programs, the Canadian national program, U SPORTS and other Division 1 FIBA leagues. As the First Division Professional League partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL is set to start its second season in May 2020.

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