Matt Bonner Having Trouble Becoming a Canadian

Matt Bonner’s citizenship difficulties are not only a major headache for himself, but also for the Canadian national hoops team. The London Free Press reports (via Project Spurs): “The fact Bonner, a former member of the Toronto Raptors and current forward with the San Antonio Spurs, has been unsuccessful in procuring his Canadian citizenship, despite getting the ball rolling back in 2008, upsets [Leo] Rautins to no end. ‘It’s very frustrating,’ the head coach said on Tuesday, after a Team Canada practice at Ryerson University. ‘I see a lot of Canadians who are less Canadian than Matt Bonner. His daughter’s Canadian. His wife’s Canadian. His grandfather’s Canadian. He’s got a home here. When he’s not playing for the San Antonio Spurs, he’s here (in Toronto).’ The main stumbling block seems to be the fact that Bonner, a native of Concord, N.H., spends most of the year in the United States. But he has no choice. He plays for San Antonio. Rautins said Canada Basketball has tried to make that point to the federal immigration ministry, but to no avail.”