Jevohn Shepherd is hoping to show the Halifax Rainmen he deserves a spot on their roster.
Only seven months removed from his four-year NCAA Division I career with the Michigan Wolverines, the 6-foot-5 Toronto native paid his way to Halifax yesterday to participate in an open Rainmen tryout at Citadel High School.
Shepherd learned about the Premier Basketball League club from Jermaine Anderson, a close friend and a former Rainmen star who is now a staple on the national team.
“He told me this was a good league and to try it out, so here I am, trying it out,” said Shepherd, who averaged 9.6 minutes, 2.5 points and 1.4 rebounds during his NCAA career. “I’d definitely like the opportunity to experience this league.”
Shepherd and former St. Francis Xavier X-Men guard Garry Gallimore are two players from yesterday’s open tryout who the Rainmen are most interested in.
A dozen players were in attendance, but only two or three will be invited to the Rainmen’s main training camp starting Dec. 1 in Yarmouth. Other hopefuls include former Dalhousie Tigers standout Devon Norris and Billy McNutt, a 6-foot-8 native of Oxford who won the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association player of the year at Douglas in 2008.
Shepherd described himself as a “jack of all trades.”
“Whatever they need me to do,” he said. “This is pro basketball. You step in and learn. I’m not coming here with an agenda, I’m here to learn from guys and get better.”
Rainmen newcomers Jason McLeish and Desmond Ferguson were both in town on the weekend along with returnees Tony Bennett, Eric Crookshank and John Strickland.
Crookshank and Strickland are expected to be re-signed this week.
