NEWS: James Derouin named Interim Head Coach of Ottawa BlackJacks

OTTAWA, ON – The Ottawa BlackJacks Basketball Club of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) announced Friday that Charles Dubé-Brais has been relieved of his head coaching duties. James Derouin, the BlackJacks Director of Basketball Strategy and Analytics, has been named interim head coach.

The BlackJacks have started the 2022 season with an 0-3 record following a 98-81 loss to the expansion Scarborough Shooting Stars on Thursday night in front of a sellout crowd at the Arena at TD Place.

Derouin has played a key leadership role in the basketball operations department, where he has been working alongside General Manager and Vice-President, Basketball Operations Jevohn Shepherd on player analysis, scouting and analytics since being appointed to his current role on February 1, 2021.

An Ottawa native, Derouin has been the head coach and program manager of the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees since June of 2010 and is the winningest coach in Gee-Gees men's basketball history. He holds a career regular season record of 170-54 (.759). The Gee-Gees appeared in the CIS Final 8 for four consecutive seasons (2013-2016) and added a fifth appearance in 2020. Derouin was named the CIS (now U SPORTS) Coach of the Year for 2014-15 after leading the Gee-Gees to a regular season record of 18-1 and a first ever program ranking as No. 1 in the CIS Top 10. Derouin oversaw the varsity careers of CEBL players Johnny Berhanemeskel, who was named the CIS Player of the Year, and Caleb Agada, who he coached to back-to-back national Defensive Player of the Year accolades. He also coached current BlackJacks guard Maxime Boursiquot.

In 2015, Derouin joined the coaching staff of Canada Basketball's cadet national team as an assistant, winning silver at the FIBA Americas tournament. Derouin helped guide Canada to a 6-1 record and a fifth-place finish at the 2016 U17 FIBA World Championships.

The University of Ottawa basketball alumnus started playing basketball for Gloucester High School and the Gloucester Wolverines. He won a CCAA national championship with Langara College before transferring to the University of Ottawa, where he served as the team captain from 2000-2002. He earned his Bachelor of Arts with a concentration in history in 2004.

Derouin will make his professional coaching debut Sunday when the BlackJacks travel to St. John's for a game against the expansion Newfoundland Growlers. The game can be seen on CBC Gem and CEBL+ beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern.

Quotes:

"After a disappointing start to our season, I felt it was necessary to make a personnel change. This team should be performing better, and I believe a fresh outlook will help turn things around. Charles (Dubé-Brais) is a very good coach and I appreciate his commitment with the BlackJacks over the past two seasons. As our current director of basketball strategy and analytics, James (Derouin) knows this league and its players very well. I look forward to seeing him taking over on the sidelines and move this team in a positive direction. We have a lot of work to do in Ottawa, but I'm confident we will make our fans proud."

Jevohn Shepherd, General Manager and Vice-President, Basketball Operations, Ottawa BlackJacks Basketball Club

"It is never easy to join a team this way, however I am excited about helping lead the BlackJacks to success. Being provided my first professional coaching assignment in my hometown is an honour. Having been a part of the BlackJacks organization for the past two seasons, I feel like I understand this league. I am also grateful to the University of Ottawa for allowing me to take this opportunity to coach professionally in the CEBL while maintaining my university coaching career."

James Derouin, Interim Head Coach, Ottawa BlackJacks Basketball Club

- via Ottawa BlackJacks