The Kent Crusaders National League men’s team have signed two import players. From Canada’s Queens University it’s 6’3 guard Simon Mitchell and from Denmark it’s 6’5 forward Soren Sorensen from Aalborg BK.

Both players have played at a high level, with Mitchell playing four years for his Canadian Division 1 side and Sorensen having played in the Danish Basketball League and Division 1.

Mitchell, 24, starred for Queens University in Kingston, Ontario in Division 1 of the CIS national university league, where he averaged 12 points and was selected Most Valuable Player for his team for the last three years. Apart from playing with the Crusaders Mitchell will be a coach at the Kent Crusaders basketball academy at Canterbury high school.

Crusaders head coach Mads Olesen is looking forward to having Mitchell as a part of the team around the Kent Crusaders: “I’m really looking forward to having Simon around both as a player but also as a coach. I’m sure he will contribute greatly to the success of the team on the court, and I think he’ll be as great an influence to the younger players off the court”.

Mitchell’s coach at Queens, Rob Smart, calls him the most complete player he has coached in his time as a CIS coach, and continues: “It is important to recognize that Simon’s statistics do not tell the story of his ability. Perhaps, the biggest compliment I can give Simon is that he continuously places the best interest of the team ahead of his own personal accolades. There is no question that Simon could have easily averaged a much higher PPG total, however, he was committed to involving his teammates and consistently shot a high percentage throughout his career. Simon is a proven winner and would be an asset to any team at the next level.”

Mitchell is still in Canada awaiting finalization of his work permit, and from there he says: “I’m very excited about this opportunity to play basketball in England and I’m looking forward to playing for the Kent Crusaders. I hope that I will be able to help the club achieve further success and in turn improve as a basketball player. I’m also looking forward to my role as a coach for the younger players. I hope that my knowledge of the game will be of use in helping develop their basketball skills. I’m eager to arrive in Canterbury and begin training with the team.”

The other import, Soren Sorensen, is a 19 year old talented guard/forward from Denmark. He has been able to play for Aalborg in the Danish Basketball League and Division 1 since the age of 16 because of his large physique – he’s 6’4 and about 17 stone of pure muscle.

Coach Olesen has known Sorensen for a number of years and as Sorensen was looking to play abroad decided to offer him a spot with the Crusaders: “I talked to Soren over the Christmas break last year and when I heard he was looking to play abroad I jumped at the opportunity to include him in our team. He’s a very talented player and he has an obvious physical advantage with his large frame, but at the same time there is a lot of room for improvement. We’re looking to feature Soren in a defensive role early in the season, and as we develop his skills we expect him to excel on offence as we get closer to the playoffs.”

Sorensen is moving to Canterbury along with his girlfriend Britt Christensen, who will be looking to use her extensive experience in Hip Hop and street dance to get into dance coaching. She was a 2006 silver medallist at the world championships of street dance in Gent, Belgium and has coached a Danish team to a 2^nd place finish in the national championship.

The Crusaders expects to announce a few more signings before season commences with a Patrons Cup game away against Plymouth Marjon on September 27^th. The club is still awaiting final confirmation on star player Robbie Parker and young big man Dan Garrad’s return and there are a few other domestic players currently training with the team who might be signed.

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 24th, 2008 at 7:52 pm and is filed under Club News, General Basketball, Team News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.