Play basketball. This is Nervens Demosthene’s full-time occupation. For a player whose main goal was to enter university, to earn a living thanks to his passion, “it’s just extra”.
The 28-year-old athlete arranged to meet us at the UQAM Sports Center, rue Sanguinet. Claude Dubois’ glass corner and lair of the Montreal Tundra, where three times a week, the guard works to refine his shots and his technique.
In the third basement of the establishment, Citadins players take three-point shots on the first court of the gymnasium. On the other side of the curtain, the Tundra players stretch and make a few baskets before fully launching into the first of two practices planned for the day.
In the middle of training, after an exercise lay-ups and rolling shots, Demosthene sits on a wooden bench similar to all those found in the province’s gymnasiums.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Nervens Demosthene
The 28-year-old never imagined he would one day grant an interview as a professional basketball player. But this visit to the Latin Quarter, on this spring-flavored Friday morning, was worth the detour, simply to understand the reality of Demosthene and his 22 teammates.
“We know what we’re getting into”
First, the Tundra is not the Alliance. They are two separate teams from two different circuits. Secondly, this nuance is important, because even if professional basketball is integrating better and better in the metropolis, the players and the parameters in which they operate remain unclear.
Demosthene, originally from Terrebonne, in the northern suburbs of Montreal, enlightened us by defining what his daily life was like.
Gym training five times a week and strength training three times a week; 24 matches between January and April and a contract valid between five and six months worth $2,000 to $10,000 per month, depending on the players.
“Right now, it’s full-time basketball. The salary is still good to live on,” explains Demosthene.
The ultra-short duration of contracts is certainly accompanied by some disadvantages. “It’s stressful at first,” admits the 6’1” player, “but if you have confidence in yourself, if you believe in yourself, it’s okay. That’s the life of an athlete. We know what we’re getting into. »
However, this is the reason why the Quebecer makes it his duty to take full advantage of each day offered to him to step on a court and be paid to play basketball. “You never know when it might end. A small injury, or you could get cut. It can go away overnight. »
Considering the background from which he comes, this privilege of wearing the jersey of a professional team is a true blessing.
From Montreal North to the northern crown
Demosthene grew up surrounded by seven brothers and sisters. His parents gave birth to five boys and three girls. The youngest of the male quintet has become the exception of the siblings. On the one hand, because he is the only one to have broken through in the world of basketball. “My family is really into soccer. My father is a big soccer fan. » On the other hand, he is the only one to have had access to university studies. He studied at Bishop’s, in Estrie. “I try to be a role model for my family. I want to take care of them. »
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Nervens Demosthene
The idea of getting into college through basketball has been with him since the beginning. It was the quintessence of his hopes, his most precious dream.
Like many young people, Demosthene began honing his skills on the street in Montreal when he was in elementary school. He also affirms that the street remains “the best school to learn basketball”.
In high school, his family moved to Terrebonne and in secondary five, he was introduced for the first time to a structure and a system that could finally promote his development. It was at the Du Harfang school, in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines.
I knew I had potential, I knew I was good at basketball. I still had a lot to learn from the structure.
Nervens Demosthene
He then worked hard to catch up in the second division at Montmorency College, then at Bishop’s, then in Saskatchewan, where he concluded his university career. “I had received offers at the end of my university career in Saskatchewan for Division 3 in Spain, but I refused to come play with the Tundra,” he insists.
The dream of Europe
Demosthene first returned home with the hope of joining the ranks of the Alliance in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CBLE). League in which he was drafted fifth overall in 2022 by the Ottawa Blackjacks.
However, that never happened. In fact, coming home to start his professional career was his priority.
La Toudra arrived last year and it came at the right time, I seized the opportunity.
Nervens Demosthene
Now that it’s done and he can check off that other box on his wish list, Demosthene is thinking bigger. Europe seems to be, in his mind, the ultimate destination. Where, at the risk of surprising some, the supporters are as, if not more, passionate and wild than in North America.
“I’m not quite comfortable yet. I really want to go to Europe if I can play two or three more years. Or if I can play LECB, I’ll try to go there. The goal is to make money too, I want to make a living from my sport. »
In the meantime, playing in front of your family is the height of happiness. “I couldn’t ask for better. » And it remains living proof that establishing professional clubs in La Belle Province will encourage young people to return home. Above all, it will allow them to believe in themselves. “Seeing that there is a professional team in your own environment makes it more interesting for the players here. »
Demosthene even concluded the interview by leaving us a little of his thoughts, comparing the situation of basketball to that of women’s hockey: “Women are moving! This is the first year [de la LPHF] and they manage to fill arenas. They create a lot of excitement. It’s another step forward for the sport. Quebec deserves to put more money elsewhere than in men’s hockey. »