CEBL Lifer Jordan Baker Leads Stingers into New Season, with Sea Bears First Up
CEBL Edmonton Stingers

CEBL Lifer Jordan Baker Leads Stingers into New Season, with Sea Bears First Up

Published on May 8, 2026 under Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL)
Edmonton Stingers News Release


Jordan Baker has seen it all.

The Edmonton Stingers icon played in Year 1 of the CEBL in 2019, lived through the 2020 bubble and won a title then went back-to-back the next year.

He played one more season in 2022 before becoming the team's head coach and now president.

On Saturday, he'll lead his team into its eighth season as it hosts the Winnipeg Sea Bears to tip off the campaign. Watch it live on CBC-TV, CBC Gem, cbcsports.ca, CBC Sports YouTube channel, and CEBL+ starting at 1:30 p.m. MT / 2:30 p.m. CT / 3:30 p.m. ET.

"Once the lights come on and the building gets loud, some guys step up to that opportunity and other guys maybe not so much. So it's an important game for us certainly, home opener, national TV, all those things," Baker said.

"But at the same time, it's one of 24 and we got to attack it like we would any other game. Trying to get better and trying to execute on the things that we've talked about."

The Stingers have not won it all since Baker helped hoist the championship trophy in 2021, and they can no longer claim to be the only franchise with multiple titles after the Niagara River Lions completed a repeat of their own last season.

Despite having the third-best regular-season record, Edmonton fell in the Western Conference Play-In round last season against the eventual finalist Calgary Surge. It then lost MVP runner-up Sean East II and key big man Keon Ambrose-Hylton in free agency to the Brampton Honey Badgers.

Still, the Stingers are entering the season with a strong squad led by returnees Nick Hornsby, Mason Bourcier, Mike Nuga and Aaron Rhooms. G Leaguer Dain Dainja joins from the Sioux Falls Skyforce and forward Isaac Jack is aboard fresh off a stint with the NCAA's University of the Pacific Tigers, where he played for Canadian coaching legend Dave Smart.

Even with the new faces, Baker said Stingers basketball wouldn't change.

"We like to play a certain brand of basketball here in Edmonton. So it takes a little bit of learning, takes a little bit of adjustments. We know May 9 is not going to be a finished product ... but we want some guys that can get their first steps underway and to play hard and hopefully start the season in front of our own fans and on national TV the right way," he said.

Having Baker in the building since Day 1 and players like Hornsby, who is entering his fourth season with the club, helps instill that culture year-over-year.

"There's always going to be a learning curve for new players and having voices - not just my own and not just the coaching staff, but from other players in the locker room - preaching some of the things that we care about in terms of unselfishness and putting your ego aside and really trying to commit to something bigger than yourself in the summer. As many people as we can have pitching that to new players, then that's better for us," Baker said.

The first test will come against a revamped Sea Bears squad, which is still looking for its first-ever title after falling in the Western Conference Final on home court last season.

Winnipeg brought in a new coach in Mike Raimbault and overhauled its roster, most notably signing three-time MVP and former Stingers star Xavier Moon, who is making his CEBL return after four seasons away, which included time with the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers.

"It's a testament to the growth of the league as well that somebody that has NBA experience would want to come back and invest and be a part of it," Baker said.

"We're only in Year 8, which seems like a lifetime for people that have been here from the beginning, but in relative terms, it's still a very young league and continuing to grow and people that get on board early and are able to help push things forward, they're going to reap the rewards of that for sure."

Isiah Osborne, a Sea Bears guard from Windsor, Ont., said he's looking forward to playing with Moon for the first time.

"He's gonna draw a lot of people to him. So that obviously opens up other people, opens up me a little bit. So I can't get too mad about that," Osborne said.

Osborne, 29, is entering his fifth CEBL season. Like Moon, he too is a former Stinger. He said he is taking his expectations for Winnipeg, which also brought back another former MVP in Teddy Allen, day by day.

"I always try to take it slow, to put ourselves in a spot to make playoffs and then once you make playoffs, important games start, it's one and done from there," he said.

Of course, that isn't quite true this season, with the CEBL Finals a best-of-three for the first time in league history.

Osborne said it'll be harder than ever to reach that series.

"The competition has gotten a lot better. Things have gotten a lot faster, pace of play is up. ... It's a good league," he said.

Likewise, Baker said the CEBL mindset has transformed drastically from the inaugural season in 2019 from trepidation to full and complete buy-in.

"You see how much the league has grown, not only with the number of teams, but also with the amount of staff involved with each team and year-round operations and some of the things that they're doing in different markets," Baker said.

"You're not walking into the season feeling cautious. You're feeling excited. You're feeling optimistic. You're attacking it with an understanding that this is going to be around for a while and that puts you in a great position to plan for the future."

It all starts again on Saturday.

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Canadian Elite Basketball League Stories from May 8, 2026


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central