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Shane James is back with the Calgary Surge.
The leader of the second-year club’s braintrust returns as general manager of the Canadian Elite Basketball League’s runner-up squad from last summer.
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And along with him, James rebounds into action with two other key cogs in the team’s basketball operations leadership — Michael Girling as assistant GM and Steve Konchalski as senior advisor.
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The appointments were announced early Tuesday.
“We are delighted to welcome Shane, Mike, and Steve back to the Calgary Surge,” said Surge vice-president Dylan Howe. “Their return underscores our dedication to assembling a team of exceptional talent and reinforces our mission to bring a CEBL championship to the city of Calgary.”
James served as the team’s GM in their inaugural season and played a leading role in assembling a roster that led the franchise to the 2023 CEBL Championship Finals.
James is a committed educator and champion of youth basketball. As the founder and director of the Under Armour Canada Elite AAU Basketball program, he has helped develop some of Canada’s brightest NBA talent. He was also the assistant GM of the CEBL’s Guelph Nighthawks for two seasons, before the franchise relocated to Calgary in October 2022.
“I am honoured and excited to rejoin the Calgary Surge after a very successful inaugural campaign,” James said. “This is a first-class organization, and I am proud to be a part of it. I am eager to get back to work and continue what we started in building a championship culture.”
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‘Coach K’ Konchalski served as the team’s senior advisor in their inaugural season.
Konchalski was the head coach of the St. Francis Xavier University men’s basketball team from 1975 to 2021.
During his tenure at StFX, he led the X-Men to 13 national tournament appearances, including three national championships in 1993, 2000, and 2001. He ended his 46-year coaching career at StFX with 919 career victories in 1,495 games, making him the most winningest coach in Canadian university basketball history.
Girling served as the team’s assistant GM in 2023.
Previously, Girling spent four seasons with the CEBL’s Nighthawks, serving as assistant coach and director of basketball operations. He spent an additional year in professional basketball as the lead assistant coach for the KW Titans of the National Basketball League of Canada. He has been a coach at the U SPORTS level for several years and is currently serving as the lead assistant coach for the women’s basketball program at the University of Guelph.
Fans can now purchase tickets to the team’s season-opener at the Scotiabank Saddledome www.calgarysurge.ca/surge2thedome.
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