Cvitkovic Named President of Brampton Honey Badgers
The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) and the Ottawa BlackJacks announced Wednesday that BlackJacks team president Michael Cvitkovic is leaving the club to accept the same position with the Brampton Honey Badgers, effective May 1. The vacancy in Brampton is the result of Honey Badgers team president John Lashway being appointed Deputy Commissioner of the CEBL by Commissioner and Co-Founder Mike Morreale on Wednesday.
While the CEBL begins a search for Cvitkovic’s replacement in Ottawa, league officials will support BlackJacks staff with the day-to-day operation of the club. BlackJacks executive Carrie McKay is being promoted to Senior Vice President and Marika Guerin is being promoted to Senior Director, Communications and Community. Both have been with the franchise since its inception.
“I have cherished the privilege of leading the BlackJacks since the team launched in November of 2019 and am proud of our many accomplishments in the community and on the basketball court,” said Cvitkovic. “The opportunity in Brampton is special to me because it is located much closer to our family home in Whitby, because the Honey Badgers are where I began my time in the CEBL in 2019, and because the opportunity to build on the success my long-time colleague John Lashway established with that championship franchise is highly appealing.”
Under Cvitkovic’s leadership, Ottawa launched as the first expansion franchise of the CEBL. The team has advanced to the playoff semifinals in each of its first three seasons. In 2022, the BlackJacks collaborated with Ottawa Tourism to host a successful CEBL Championship Weekend. As the global pandemic progressed, the BlackJacks were the first professional sports team in Ontario to welcome back a paid attendance at the Arena at TD Place on July 17, 2021, when they defeated the defending champion Edmonton Stingers, 79-74, on national television. With strategic partnerships including the City of Ottawa and the Eastern Ontario Basketball Association, in addition to numerous blue-chip sponsors joining the team’s corporate roster, the BlackJacks have built the foundation for long-term success.
In addition to naming Lashway, who served the dual role of Honey Badgers president and CEBL executive vice president, its Deputy Commissioner, the CEBL appointed league vice president Josh Knoester to be Chief Operating Officer. Morreale, Lashway and Knoester have led the development of the CEBL from a six-team startup to a 10-team FIBA affiliated league licensed by Canada Basketball considered to be among the best of the 200 FIBA leagues around the world.
“The demands resulting from the continuous growth of the CEBL, several prominent ownership groups having invested in the league the past 18 months, and more growth on the horizon, calls for an enhanced leadership structure within our league office to leverage opportunities and continue to thrive,” said Morreale. “John Lashway and Josh Knoester have played crucial roles since the beginning that has enabled us to grow through the pandemic and position us for further growth year after year. Our league staff is recognized domestically and internationally for its excellence, and Knoester and Lashway have been instrumental in creating and sustaining that reputation.”
In addition to leading the Ottawa BlackJacks, Cvitkovic has overseen broadcasting for the CEBL, installed NBA-level communications practices, and was also central to the league navigating through the pandemic. He and Lashway worked together for six seasons with the Toronto Raptors.
A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 71 percent of its 2022 rosters being Canadian. Players bring experience from the NBA, NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA programs as well as U SPORTS. Nine players have moved from the CEBL into the NBA following a CEBL season, and 28 CEBL players attended NBA G League training camps last October. The 2023 CEBL season tips off May 24 with the Brampton Honey Badgers visiting the Ottawa BlackJacks in a game that will be nationally televised on TSN. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube.
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