River Lions to host D-League showdown

The NBL Canada and the NBA D-League will collide once again this preseason, with the Niagara River Lions set to play Raptors 905 on Wednesday, November 9 at the Meridian Centre.

Fans of both sides will get their first look at their team's lineup, and those in St. Catharines should be all the more excited to watch. The team have already brought in forwards Kirk Williams, Jr. and Richard Amardi, along with guards Tyshawn Patterson, Marcus Lewis, and Bilal Benn, so far in the offseason.

Although league MVP Logan Stutz is out, floor general Sammy Zeglinski and big men Russ Conley and Mike Allison are still in. Newcomers LaQuavius Cotton and Mangisto Arop reinforce the young team as it faces one of its biggest challenges yet.

Grâce Lokole will return from two weeks of training in Slovakia to coach the River Lions. He has the lofty task of outwitting Raptors 905's Jerry Stackhouse, a former NBA superstar and assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors.

In last year's set of exhibition games, Raptors 905 slipped past the Windsor Express and then defeated the London Lightning. However the game goes, this contest marks the next step for the new organization.

Niagara's president and general manager Jeff Sotiriou said, "We are excited to bring the Raptors brand to St. Catharines. It is a great opportunity to be on the same basketball court as a D-League competitor. In doing so, our hope is that Niagara recognizes the high level of professional basketball that is offered so close to home."

It is currently unclear what the Raptors D-League lineup will look like in November. However, the team recently acquired rights to Canadian guard Brady Heslip from the Reno Bighorns. They lost rights to big man Ronald Roberts, who led the team in rebounds and ranked second in points last season.