Seventeen Canadian basketball players have laced up their sneakers to play in the NBA, including four individuals who are part of the league's 2003-04 season.

Forward Rick Fox has won three NBA Championship rings (2000, 2001 and 2002) as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. Fox, who was selected by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 1991 NBA Draft, averaged nine points and 4.3 rebounds per game in 2002-03. Born in Toronto, ON, Fox played with the Celtics for six seasons before joining the Lakers as a free agent in 1997.

In 2002, after one season with the New Jersey Nets, centre Todd MacCulloch of Winnipeg, MB returned to the team that selected him in the second round of the 1999 NBA Draft: the Philadelphia 76ers. MacCulloch, who was placed on the injured list in February 2003 with left and right foot neuropathy, also has undergone treatment for symptoms of Charcot-Marie-Tooth. In 42 games in 2002-03, he averaged 7.1 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.

In 2002-03, Jamaal Magloire started a career high 82 games for the Hornets. Gregory Shamus NBAE/Getty Images

Toronto native and New Orleans Hornets centre Jamaal Magloire established a number of career highs in his third NBA season, recording 10.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Selected by the Hornets as the 19th overall pick in the NBA Draft 2000, Magloire finished his career at the University of Kentucky as the school's all-time leader with 268 blocked shots.

Victoria, BC native and Dallas Mavericks guard Steve Nash notched 17.7 points and 7.3 assists per game in 2002-03. The two-time NBA All-Star was drafted by Phoenix as the 15th pick overall in the 1996 NBA Draft and spent two seasons with the Suns before being traded to the Mavs in June 1998. In addition to his professional play, Nash is a key member of Canada's senior men's national basketball team.

Former NBA players Brian Heaney and Leo Rautins remain involved in the game as basketball analysts on NBA telecasts, while Los Angeles Lakers draft pick Jay Triano is the head coach of Canada's senior men's national basketball team and an assistant coach with the Toronto Raptors.

The following Canadians have played in the NBA (current players in bold):

Norm Baker	Chicago 46-47
Hank Biasatti	Toronto 46-47
Ron Crevier	Golden State, Detroit 85-86 Selected by Chicago, 1983 NBA Draft, 75th pick
Rick Fox	Boston 91-92 to 96-97 LA Lakers 97-98 to present Selected by Boston, 1991 NBA Draft, 24th pick
Stewart Granger	Cleveland 83-84 Atlanta 84-85 New York 86-87 Selected by Cleveland, 1983 NBA Draft, 24th pick
Lars Hansen	Seattle 78-79 Selected by Chicago, 1976 NBA Draft, 37th pick
Brian Heaney	Baltimore 69-70 Selected by Baltimore, 1969 NBA Draft, 215th pick
Bob Houbregs	Milwaukee and Baltimore 53-54 Baltimore-Boston-Fort Wayne 54-55 Fort Wayne/Detroit 55-56 to 57-58 Selected by Milwaukee, 1953 NBA Draft
Todd MacCulloch	Philadelphia 99-00 and 00-01 New Jersey 01-02 Philadelphia 02-03 to present Selected by Philadelphia, 1999 NBA Draft, 47th pick
Jamaal Magloire	Charlotte/New Orleans 00-01 to present Selected by Charlotte, 2000 NBA Draft, 19th pick
Steve Nash	Phoenix 96-97 and 97-98 Dallas 98-99 to present Selected by Phoenix, 1996 NBA Draft, 15th pick
Leo Rautins	Philadelphia 83-84 Atlanta 84-85 Selected by Philadelphia, 1983 NBA Draft, 17th pick
Mike Smrek	Chicago 85-86 LA Lakers 86-87 to 87-88 San Antonio 88-89 Golden State 89-90 Golden State, Clippers 90-91 Golden State 91-92 Selected by Portland, 1985 NBA Draft, 25th pick
Gino Sovran	Toronto 46-47
Ernie Vandeweghe	New York 49-50 to 53-54 and 55-56 Selected by New York, 1949 NBA Draft
Bill Wennington	Dallas 85-86 to 89-90 Sacramento 90-91 and 99-00 Chicago 93-94 to 98-99 Selected by Dallas, 1985 NBA Draft, 16th pick
Jim Zoet	Detroit 82-83

Additional Canadians drafted by NBA teams:

Mike Brkovich	Milwaukee, 1981 NBA Draft, 181st pick
David Coulthard	Detroit, 1982 NBA Draft, 214th pick
Bob Croft	Boston, 1970 NBA Draft, 123rd pick
Mickey Fox	Detroit, 1975 NBA Draft, 169th pick Portland, 1979 NBA Draft, 56th pick
Joe Kazanowski	Utah, 1983 NBA Draft, 146th pick
Dan Meagher	Chicago, 1985 NBA Draft, 125th pick
Perry Mirkovich	Portland, 1980 NBA Draft, 125th pick
Barry Mungar	Washington, 1986 NBA Draft, 82nd pick
William Njoku	Indiana, 1994 NBA Draft, 41st pick
Eli Pasquale	Seattle, 1984 NBA Draft, 106th pick
George Rautins	Buffalo, 1975 NBA Draft, 158th pick
Tony Simms	New York, 1983 NBA Draft 128th pick
Karl Tilleman	Denver, 1984 NBA Draft, 79th pick
Phil Tollestrop	Buffalo 1973 NBA Draft 211th pick
Jay Triano	LA Lakers, 1981 NBA Draft, 179th pick
Greg Wiltjer	Chicago, 1984 NBA Draft, 43rd pick

Contributions by Curtis J. Phillips