In early August, Carleton basketball star Phil Scrubb was not wearing the typical Ravens uniform, nor could he be found in the Ravens’ Nest where the team trains.
Instead, Scrubb was in the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, wearing the Maple Leaf, trying to crack the Canadian men’s national basketball team.
The eventual team will be made up of some of the players invited to the camp and will then go on to participate in the 2013 International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Americas Championships in an attempt to earn a spot in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
The Ravens point guard said he found out that he was one of the select few chosen to attend the camp over the phone by Team Canada’s new head coach, Jay Triano.
“I was pretty surprised, I wasn’t expecting it. I am very thankful for the opportunity,” Scrubb said.
Thomas Scrubb, Phil’s younger brother, said he was happy for his brother and said he deserved it.
Phil Scrubb was the only player invited to the camp who currently plays in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS).
“I didn’t really think about it,” Scrubb said of being the only player from the CIS chosen to attend the camp. “It’s an honour to be the only guy there from the CIS, but I just wanted to go there and play well and represent me, Carleton, and my team.”
Tyson Hinz, a teammate of Scrubb for the past three seasons, said Scrubb’s dedication to the sport helped earn him the invite.
“His work ethic is something that is pretty tough to match. When you see the best player on your team always in the gym, it motivates you to do the same thing,” Hinz said.
The training camp involved facing off against the Jamaican men’s national basketball team in two exhibition matches Aug. 8 and 10.
Scrubb did not play in the first game, in which Canada won 81-72, but he was a starter for the rematch.
He played over 25 minutes in Canada’s thrilling comeback win over Jamaica, with the final score of 77-72. He tallied a total of two points, with three rebounds, and one steal.
Scrubb was cut from the squad after the two exhibition games, before the team continued its series of tournaments and games.
“I was a little disappointed, but I tried to use it as motivation,” he said. “I wasn’t too discouraged about it. I got to come back and play two good NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) games and train with the Carleton team, so again, I was disappointed, but it is good to be back in Ottawa.”
Although he said it was not the ultimate result he wanted, Scrubb said he learned a lot from the training camp and will take what he has learned back with him to the Ravens for his remaining two years at the school.
“He got the chance to see what playing against the best is like, which is obviously a huge advantage as it kind of shows how much stuff you need to work on to get to that level,” Hinz said. “I’m sure he will be motivated and he’ll help our team be motivated to do the best we can.”
Scrubb said the coaches gave him constructive criticism in order to improve his overall game and give him a better chance of making the team in the future.
“They said that I need to be more vocal, especially if I want to play the point guard position. I need to get bigger and stronger and work on adjusting to the speed of the game at the professional level,” he said.
“I learned some things and that’s what I’m going to keep working on and hopefully I get another opportunity.”
