Basketball Manitoba, Winnipeg Sea Bears welcome new top-tier court

It’s the end of an era in Manitoba.

The Winnipeg Sea Bears are saying goodbye to their old court, which created more than 60 years of memories for dozens of basketball teams and historic events. In exchange: a new top-tier court.

With the recent success of the Sea Bears, the need for a top-tier basketball court in Manitoba was higher than ever. It’s why Basketball Manitoba and the CEBL franchise partnered to purchase a new portable hardwood basketball court, which comes from the recent NCAA Women’s Final Four held in Cleveland and was also used at the recent FIBA World Cup held last summer.

“Basketball is a big part of the community locally and having a new court is a great opportunity to continue that legacy on and hopefully we get to use it for many years to come,” said Jason Smith, the president of the Winnipeg Sea Bears.

The new court will also help Basketball Manitoba attract other world-class basketball events to the province well into the future.

“From NBA exhibition games to national championship to other FIBA international hosting events, it will definitely be opening more doors for us,” said Adam Wedlake, the executive director of Basketball Manitoba.

While it’s exciting to get a new court, it’s also sad to say goodbye to the old one, which was originally constructed in 1955 and saw more 60 years of history. It was at the heart of the old Winnipeg Arena in the 1967 and 1999 Pan Am Games.

It also bore witness to the inaugural “Naismith Cup,” where the Toronto Raptors faced off against the Vancouver Grizzlies for the first time ever.

“Every basketball player who came out of Manitoba, coach or referee who went on to something bigger or better played on that court, 100 per cent,” said Wedlake.

“This is definitely not even once in a generation thing, this is a once in a three-generation thing we have here.”

The court’s last official event will be at the Parkland Recreation Complex for the 2024 Manitoba Games in Dauphin.