He's sticking around for at least another season.
Vancouver Bandits, the Langley-based professional basketball team, confirmed Wednesday that the head coach and general manager Kyle Julius will remain at the helm around through the 2025-26 season.
Julius joined the club in 2020, during the Bandits鈥� second Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) season, and made an immediate impact, said team president Dylan Kular.
He credited Julius with helping the team advance to its first-ever CEBL championship in his dual role.
Fast forward to 2024, and Julius once again led the Bandits to the CEBL finals this past August, losing by just two points to the Niagara River Lions.
A native of Thunder Bay, Ont., Julius鈥� tenure with the Bandits has fuelled the rise of B.C.鈥檚 pro basketball team to become an annual CEBL contender.
Vancouver has advanced to the CEBL post-season in each of his five seasons at the helm and has won various individual and team accolades along the way, including being named coach of the year at the league鈥檚 annual awards last August in Montreal.
鈥淭he past five seasons with the Bandits have been an incredibly rewarding experience for my family and I," Julius shared.
"It has been truly amazing to have the opportunity to live here locally, build relationships in the community, and help drive the growth of the Bandits and develop the club into the CEBL鈥檚 premier organization,鈥� he said.
The Bandits, who play out of the Langley Events Centre (LEC), finished the 2024 season with a 14-6 record 鈥� the club鈥檚 best regular season result in franchise history. And at the 2024 CEBL Championship Weekend, Julius led the franchise to win its first-ever western conference championship.
鈥淲e have created a winning culture here in B.C. through tremendous hard work, trials, tribulations, and lots of special moments. Our coaching staff has consisted of great people, our players have been outstanding and our front office has contributed on so many different levels,鈥� Julius said.
The CEBL campaign is expanding to a 24-game regular season slate in 2025.
With the club鈥檚 best-ever finish and numerous individual and team accomplishments to its name during the past five seasons 鈥� under the direction of Julius 鈥� the organization is primed for an even bigger year ahead, said Kular.
鈥淐oach Kyle is an instrumental part of our organization. Over five seasons of Bandits basketball, he has instilled core values in our roster and front office that continue to resonate and attract talent to our team. His leadership as a community ambassador during the CEBL off-season and a tactician on the court each summer has been inspiring to watch and we will continue to support his vision for winning basketball and community impact over the next two years,鈥� added the president.
Organizational and roster development is integral to Julius鈥� approach to recruiting coaches and players. Since joining Vancouver, Julius has created a nurturing culture where players can learn and grow, often earning CEBL award recognition and receiving overseas and NBA contracts following a summer with the Bandits.
Players earning notable distinctions following a season with the Bandits include: 2024 CEBL most valuable player Taze Moore, 2024 CEBL Canadian player of the year Koby McEwen, 2022 CEBL developmental player of the year Thomas Kennedy, and 2021 defensive player of the year Brandon Gilbeck.
鈥淚 am very grateful for everyone's hard work, sacrifice, and support of our vision to become one of the best sports franchises in all of North America. I am thrilled to build on what we have all worked so hard to create here for the past five summers. We have the best fans in the league and I can't wait to get back out there in front of them again at LEC,鈥� Julius said.
The Bandits鈥� seventh CEBL season will tip-off in May 2025. A full season schedule is expected to be announced in the coming months.
