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Canada Day came early in the NBA. Last nights NBA draft was a historic event for our country. A record number of Canadians were taken, and the first overall pick is someone who Hamilton hoops fans remember well.

For years, Andrew Wiggins has been known as Canada’s next big thing. And he’s on the world stage.

“I’ve been dreaming of this moment from when I was a little kid,” said Wiggins after being selected first overall in the NBA draft.

Local fans remember Wiggins well from a showcase at McMaster in early 2013, showing off NBA skills as a 17-year-old.

But last night was about more than a chosen one. Wiggins is the second Canadian in a row to be taken first overall. No country outside the U.S. has done that.

“(It’s a) great thing for Toronto…great thing for Canada, actually,” he said.

And it didn’t stop there. Sharp shooting Nik Stauskis of Mississauga surprised many when he was taken eighth by Sacramento. And, ten picks later, Tyler Ennis of Brampton went to the Phoenix Suns.

The Canadian wave continued with Toronto’s Dwight Powell going 45th. It’s something that we’ve never seen, but a former national player says we should get used to it.

“I think this is going to be a fairly consistent thing. We’ve seen this with France. We’ve seen this with Argentina. They’ve had a wave of players that have made it to the NBA and have significant careers. I think in that kind of mould, that’s what Canada’s about to do,” said Sherman Hamilton, a former national team player.

Hamilton says influences over the past number of years like the raptors coming to Toronto and Steve Nash winning MVP has lit our passion, and forged this world-class talent.

It should be noted that the Toronto Raptors missed out on the chance to get the homegrown talent. They chose 20th and were rumored to have an eye on Tyler Ennis before Phoenix grabbed him. Tough for them, but the Canadians are in demand.