The Ballenas Whalers will be represented on the U-16 Boys Provincial Basketball team by Grade 10 student Liviano Canil.
Canil, who made the senior Whalers team despite his age, is a choice that makes “a lot of sense” to Whalers coach Taylor Wilson. And Canil is excited to play with the B.C. team.
“It felt great to be selected to the provincial team,” Canil said. “It’s very encouraging to see my hard work and dedication being recognized. I’m looking forward to representing the province in various tournaments throughout the spring and summer.”
In Grade 10 his talents showed through this season, which the Whalers lost in a quadruple overtime game with a chance at the playoffs on the line.
“Livi is a real good player,” Wilson said. “I remember when (head coach) Kevin McMillen was talking about him before our season even started, telling me about how good this kid was and I was sort of hesitant being that he was in Grade 10. But Livi showed us he had what it took to be a part of that team.”
Canil impressed his coaches through the season, proving that it was a good move to make him a part of the senior team, even though he was still classified as a junior player. According to Wilson, he sees Canil as someone that “has what it takes to play at the next level.”
“He definitely has what it takes,” Wilson said. “He’s got good size for a kid in Grade 10 and he’s still growing. He’s a good, raw athlete and has some pretty good talent. I think that if he keeps on working at it, fine tuning a few aspects of his game, he’ll be able to play basketball at the college level.”