Phil Scrubb has been a part of Canada’s men’s basketball team for close to a decade.

He has experienced plenty of heartbreak at international tournaments but at this year’s FIBA World Cup everything is different. 

Canada crushed France 95-65 in their opening before trouncing Lebanon 128-73 in their second game to advance to the next round. 

Scrubb has been around the national since 2015, long enough to be fully aware of the golden opportunity that is slowly materialising for him and his teammates.

The veteran was present for Canada’s failure to qualify for the 2018 and 2022 Olympic Games — not to mention their disappointing showing at the 2019 FIBA World Cup, where Canada finished in 21st place. But fast forward to the 2023 World Cup, and now Scrubb is surrounded by the best NBA talent ever assembled on a Canadian roster and, as evidenced by Friday’s convincing victory over France, they are among the favourites to wind up on the podium.

So how did Scruggs, at age 30, finally arrive at a place where he has a legitimate chance of winning a medal at the FIBA World Cup?

Phil and Tommy Scrubb: Brothers in arms

One can’t have a conversation about Phil’s extensive basketball career without discussing his brother Tommy. The duo forged a strong bond throughout childhood, so much so that Phil, who is a year younger than his brother, decided to move across the country and attend Carleton University alongside Tommy.

“When I was in Grade 12, Tommy came back at Christmas time and I realised how much better he had gotten,” Phil told U Sports. “At that point, I still wanted to go Division I, but then during the year Coach Smart came to meet with me and I realized it was the best place for me to grow as a player.”

In his first year at Carleton, Scrubb averaged 13.1 points per game to help the Ravens to a perfect 22-0 record and their seventh national championship. It was a sign of things to come, as over the course of the next four years the brothers earned a host of accolades; Tommy was named the 2013 Final 8 MVP and was awarded Defensive Player of the Year honours in back-to-back seasons (2014, 2015), while Phil became the only three-time recepient of the Mike Moser Memorial Trophy as the Oustaning Player in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) history. During Phil’s time at Carleton, the Ravens had a win-loss record of 102-3.

The Scrubbs take their basketball talents to Europe

Following University, Phil suited up for the NBA Summer League teams of the Memphis Grizzlies and Toronto Raptors, but went undrafted. So he and his brother embarked on a basketball journey across Europe. Tommy began his professional career with Kataja in the Finnish Korisliiga (the same team where NBA star Lauri Markkanen began his pro career), while Phil joined AEK Athens in the Greek League.

Combined, the brothers have played for 17 different teams in seven countries! One would be forgiven for assuming that the constant relocation would take a toll on any athlete, but for Tommy, that hasn’t been the case.

“It’s easy to adjust when you just focus on why you’re there which is basketball,” Tommy told U Sports.

Unfortunately, the Scrubbs never had the chance to share the court when they were in Europe, but have played alongside one another in Canada – both for the Ottawa BlackJacks and the country’s senior men’s team. In fact, the pair have been a constant presence in the national setup for years, and their commitment to their country is, to put it lightly, impressive. In 2019, Tommy turned up for training camp ahead of the FIBA World Cup – just two days after getting married.

Answering the call

While the Scrubbs dedication to the national team is commendable, it has also been vital for close to a decade. Phil was a member of the 2015 team that won bronze at the FIBA Americas Championship, with Tommy joining in 2016 for the Olympic qualifying tournament for the Rio 2016 Games. Canada failed to qualify for those Games, but the Scrubbs reunited once more at the 2019 World Cup, which was somewhat remarkable since the national team program was meant to be filled with NBA talent at this point — and the Scrubbs’ would be surplus to requirements.

But as Canada’s NBA players either declined to participate or withdrew with injury (only Khem Birch and Cory Joseph committed to the team), the Scrubbs – along with Canada’s base of other international players – showed their value to the team.

Alas, Canada faired poorly at the tournament in the People’s Republic of China, but one positive that emerged from the team’s 21st-place finish was the enactment of the Summer Core plan, which centred on finding 14 players who were willing to commit to represent Canada for three consecutive summers.Suddenly, with the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Olympic Games on the horizon, Canada’s NBA stars heeded the call. Yet while players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dominated the headlines when Canada Basketball announced the preliminary squad for the warmup games ahead of the World Cup, Phil and Tommy Scrubb – two of only three players (Melvin Ejim) who had travelled to China in 2019 – were there yet again – as steadfast and loyal as ever.

Unfortunately for Tommy, he did not make the final 12-man roster for the 2023 World Cup, but it wouldn’t be a reach to suggest he’s living the experience vicariously through his brother. Phil has been primarily reserved to a bench role in Canada’s first two games of the competition, totaling a combined statline of 6 points, 5 assists and 2 rebounds in 22 minutes of action.

With Canada’s passage to the next round of the competition already secured, there is growing belief that this group can reach the podium and/or clinch a top-two finish amongst teams from the Americas at the World Cup, which means they will have obtained a quota for Canada to next summer’s Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Were that to happen, there’s no guarantee that Phil or Tommy would be a part of Canada’s 2024 Olympic squad. Since National Olympic Committees have the exclusive authority for the representation of their respective countries at the Olympic Games, athletes’ participation at the Paris Games depends on their NOC selecting them to represent their delegation at Paris 2024.

But after all the Scrubb brothers have given to Canadian basketball, wouldn’t it be the most fitting way to reward them after so many years of service? That is a question for another time – for now, Phil and the rest of the Road Warriors are focused on the task at hand: winning the basketball World Cup.