St. John’s Edge head coach Steve Marcus is a native of Springfield, Mass., who once worked for the Portland-based Maine Red Claws of the NBA G-League.
So perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that there’s been a bit of a lean towards New England as the Edge build their roster for the 2019-20 National Basketball League of Canada season.
The team’s latest signing is Torrington, Conn., native Desmond Williams, a lanky six-foot-seven, 187-pound wing.
"With a six-foot-10 wingspan, he is incredibly long and athletic. He comes from a great basketball family and thinks the game at an extremely high level.” — Steve Marcus
The 27-year-old Williams playted professionally in Europe after graduating from Southern Connecticut State University in 2016, appearing in leagues in Finland, France and Luxembourg.
While at Southern Connecticut, Williams led the Fighting Owls to NCAA Division II tournament appearances. As a senior, he averaged 22.5 points, almost 1rebounds and four assists per game en route to being named an NABC NCAA D2 All-American and the ECAC Division II Player of the Year.
“Desmond has incredible length to play on the wing,” said Marcus in a team release. “With a six-foot-10 wingspan, he is incredibly long and athletic. He comes from a great basketball family and thinks the game at an extremely high level.”
The Edge now have eight players on their roster, including returnees Junior Cadougan and Murphy Burnatowski. Of the six newcomers, three have New England connections, including Cane Broome, a native of Hartford, Conn., and internet sensation Jesse Jones, who attended the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut.
St. John’s plays its first game Dec. 27 in Moncton, N.B., where the opposition will be the defending champion Magic and opens its home schedule Jan. 7 at Mile One Centre against the K-W Titans.
Twitter: @telybrendan
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