For Paige Crozon, it’s hard to not feel like her basketball career isn’t a dream.
The now number-six ranked women’s player in the FIBA 3×3 Individual World Rankings grew up playing basketball in the playground in her hometown of Humboldt. Her love for 3×3 came instantly — the sport immediately resembled her humble beginnings, as she played street ball in small town Saskatchewan.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to play in the Olympics,” said Crozon. “To share this journey with [my daughter] Poppy has been awesome. It really makes me proud to see how proud she is..”
Year in and year out, Crozon has played basketball in countries near and far since the instalment of the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series in 2019 — an annual tour with tournaments all around the world.
Now, the central Saskatchewan product is on the cusp of starring in Paris, with Canada’s 3×3 Women’s National Team — believed by many to be one of Canada’s best gold-medal threats when the 2024 Olympic Games get underway.
For those unfamiliar, the squad — which features Crozon, twins Michelle and Katherine Plouffe and Kacie Bosch — is among the world’s best and claimed silver at the 2022 FIBA 3×3 Women’s World Cup.
Despite the team’s success, an Olympic appearance has thus far eluded them. First introduced as an Olympic sport for the 2020 Olympic Games, the team was unable to qualify for the Games due to a rule that permitted only one of a country’s 3×3 national teams — men’s or women’s — to earn a berth into the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. With Canada’s men having a higher world ranking, Crozon’s dreams of qualifying for Tokyo were dashed.
But now, three years later, it’s hard to feel like the stars aren’t aligning for Crozon and Canada. The team is fresh off its second-straight FIBA 3×3 Women’s Final win which came this September in Ulaanbaatar — as well as winning five Series Stops, including a clean sweep on home soil in Edmonton, Quebec City and Montreal.
“It’s been incredible to be a part of this team, and to also just be a part of this group that has so much chemistry and camaraderie, and trust in one another. I feel so proud of the culture that we’ve established,” said Crozon. “It hasn’t always been an easy path — I think it’s only made us closer as a group and provided even more motivation.”
But prior to officially beginning their podium pursuit, Canada will have to first punch their ticket to Paris — something they will have two opportunities to do in May. First a FIBA Universality-driven Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Japan, where Canada will compete against seven other nations for one spot in the Olympics.
If Crozon and company are unsuccessful, they will join 15 other teams later that month at a last chance FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Hungary with three Olympic berths up for grabs.
In the meantime, the squad along with head coach and three-time Olympian Kim Smith-Gaucher, is training in Lethbridge as the ramp up toward qualification quickens. The team also begaun working with the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institue Network (COPSIN) in May of last year.
“As soon as the calendar turned over to January 1st, 2024 — I feel the energy around it and a little bit of pressure, but also a lot of excitement,” said Crozon, who currently works with the Saskatchewan- based Living Skies Indigenous Basketball League.
Crozon played the entirety of her high school basketball career at Humboldt Collegiate Institute, and recalls going up against boys at the school since grade nine. Thanks to her now teammate, Michelle Plouffe, she was recruited by the Utah Utes to play NCAA Division 1 basketball, where she went on to join Plouffe in Salt Lake City and begin a five-year career with the program.
From there, she quickly transitioned to the 3×3 game and reunited with her former teammate.
Crozon and Canada’s 3×3 Women’s National Team will begin the 2024 FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series this spring, with the sport set to star in Paris from July 30-Apr. 5.
Written by: Matt Johnson for Sask Sport