Jacob Dunbar has waited patiently for his moment to shine in the National Lacrosse League. This season, he’s finally getting those opportunities with the Ottawa Black Bears.
Dunbar was drafted 13th overall by the San Diego Seals in the 2021 NLL Entry Draft. During his 2021-22 rookie campaign, Dunbar featured in 2 of the 22 Seals’ games (regular season and postseason included) that year. The following season, he featured in 3 of the 19 Seals’ games.
He knew that as a young and unproven up-and-coming forward, it was going to be a challenge to find space in a lineup that included the likes of Dane Dobbie, Wes Berg, Curtis Dickson, and Austin Staats, to name a few. Dunbar, who was 20 years old at the time he was drafted, understood that his time on the floor might be limited; he just wanted those moments to prove what he was capable of.
“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do since I was a little kid, to be an everyday pro lacrosse player,” Dunbar said. “I think it just feels good to be a part of a team. To be a part of each game, contributing, and not watching it from the press box is awesome. I just love to be out there and playing lacrosse. It’s fun for me and even more fun when I get to play it.”
Last year, during the 2023-2024 season, Dunbar got the chance to showcase his skills for the Seals fandom for a career-most seven games. Curtis Dickson had been battling injuries in the latter part of the season, so Dunbar was slotted in on the right side of that offense with more regularity.
The Surrey, British Columbia native didn’t like sitting out for so many games, but he wasn’t mopping around asking for sympathy; he was studying. Every practice and every game, Dunbar was picking the brains of those around him. He was discovering the best formula for him to be his best version of himself as a lacrosse player.
“Honestly, I think at the end of the day, it may have sucked and definitely did suck to sit, but learning from those guys is invaluable,” Dunbar said. “I don’t think I’ll be able to take that much from so many great players all on one team at the same time. So, each time I was at practice watching those guys, I just said, ‘Learn, learn, learn. I know that I’ll get my opportunity, and once I do, I’ll make it worth it.’”
For a young offensive player like Dunbar, he couldn’t have asked for a better offensive core to learn from.
“Not being on the floor made me that much hungrier,” Dunbar said. “I got to learn from amazing players, players that I looked up to growing up, like Dane Dobbie, Curtis Dickson, Wes Berg. I grew up watching Tre LeClair play with my brother, who is actually from the same hometown. So, I got to watch and play under guys that I thought were pretty good, and it was pretty nice to learn from those guys and take things from each and every single one of their games.”
Dunbar proved that he was learning while not playing, although it did take him a couple of games to get his legs underneath him. He was held without a point in each of his first two games but went on to tally multiple goals in back-to-back-back contests, including against the Toronto Rock and Halifax Thunderbirds, who had tough defenses to crack. Dunbar also finished the year on a strong note, posting another multi-goal game in the Seals’ second-to-last regular season match on April 13th.
By the end of the regular season, Dunbar had posted eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points in 7 games played. When it was all said and done, the 5’11” 180lb righty was the team’s 7th-best point-getter for the year. He was able to achieve that because of all that he had learned. But, what exactly was he picking up from all the guys around him?
“I learned to value the ball and make sure I’m doing all the little things,” Dunbar said. “Really, what I took away from those guys, especially coming in as a young guy, is how big the little things in lacrosse are. Just getting off the floor, maybe giving 10 percent more to get to the bench, making sure you get to the top of the play to make a good pass, making sure you’re moving your feet always, making sure you’re giving that 10 percent more, doing the little things. That’s what wins championships.”
Dunbar didn’t know it at the time, but that April 13th game would be his last with the Seals. This past September, he was traded to the Ottawa Black Bears in exchange for defenceman Zack Deaken. When one door closes, another opens, and that’s exactly what happened to Dunbar. Not only was he joining a team headlined by Jeff Teat, but he was also joining a roster on which he was going to get regular playing time right away.
Dunbar has played in all of the Black Bears nine games this season, posting a team-leading 20 goals, as well as 12 assists for 32 points. Now at 24 years of age, Dunbar is seizing his moment.
“They want me to be confident out there,” Dunbar said. “But that also comes with being a younger guy, and they’re really good at making sure that if I do make a little mistake, they’re going to correct me and make sure that I know that they’re not getting on me to be mad or be dicks or anything like that. They’re really trying to make me better, and they want to build me up, which they’re taking this.”
As a team, the Black Bears have struggled to find the back of the net this season, but they are still 5-4 at the halfway mark of their season. In Week 12, the Black Bears scored a franchise-best 18 goals against the Albany FireWolves, and that includes the New York Riptide years. Dunbar scored a hat trick in that one, his 5th hat trick of the season.
It was a big game for Dunbar, but, more importantly, it was a big game for the team. Having lost the two games prior to the FireWolves matchup, the Black Bears were in need of a pick-me-up W. They were able to get it done, in part because they believed in each other, and that is something that has never wavered.
“I think that we just trust each other,” Dunbar said. “There’s nobody who’s like, ‘Give me the ball, give me the ball, give me that shot.’ Even though Teater’s [Teat] is arguably one of the best players in the world, I’ve never heard him say, ‘Give me the ball, give me the shot.’ He’d rather celebrate somebody else scoring another goal than celebrate himself, and that’s what I think the whole group is like. This team has no egos, and that’s what I love.”
Dunbar’s career is just starting to take off. In a few weeks, he will have played more games this NLL season than he did in his first three years in the league. This story makes the case that ‘All good things come to those who wait.’
By Adam Levi
