NBA players struggle to pronounce Canadian places correctly and it's hilarious
The NBA might have been in Canada for 28 years now, but the country is still working on getting name recognition for some of its cities and provinces.
TikToker “Coach Chris” quizzed a few familiar NBA names about Canadian cities and provinces, and well, it led to mixed results.
Speaking to Rajon Rondo, Jamal Crawford, Rafer Alston, Gabe Vincent, and Josh Smith, Coach Chris offered up an impromptu quiz on the pronunciation of these 15 Canadian place names.
- Scarborough
- Brampton
- Mississauga
- Saskatchewan
- Quebec
- Vaughan
- Nova Scotia
- Regina
- Etobicoke
- Kitchener
- Manitoba
- Vancouver
- Guelph
- Winnipeg
- Hamilton
While many people living in Canada for a long period of time might be used to the non-phonetic pronunciations of some of the country’s most highly populated cities, more than a few of the names didn’t quite get through to the five American-born NBA players.
@coachchris_2 NBA PLAYERS PRONOUNCING CANADIAN PROVINCES AND CITIES šššØš¦ #canada #fyp #toronto #brampton #scarborough #nba #vancouver #manitoba #novascotia #saskatchewan #mississauga #viralvideo #viraltiktok ā¬ Spider-Man 2099 (Miguel O’Hara) – Daniel Pemberton
The players seemed the most slipped up by Etobicoke, Saskatchewan, Kitchener, Regina, Guelph, Mississauga, and even Rondo struggling with Vancouver despite it being the former home of the NBA’s Grizzlies franchise from 1995 until 2001.
Alston, who played 127 games with the Raptors on two separate stints, got excited at the mention of Mississauga.
“Mississauga! That’s my place!” he exclaimed.
Vincent, meanwhile, said he’s got family out in Saskatchewan, though he didn’t elaborate further.
In all fairness to the players, they’re not exactly the biggest basketball hot spots in the country, with just one NBA team north of the border. “Coach Chris” hinted at more NBA content coming, so we’ll keep an eye out for future players trying to manage their pronunciations of “Tsawwassen.”
Follow Channels and Categories