Every week, ESPN's Megan Hustwaite brings together the stories that have caught her eye across the WNBL.
Opals for Woods, but first a chip
Courtney Woods had only vocalised her goal to one person. Her Townsville coach Shannon Seebohm.
The 27-year-old guard had aspirations to make the Opals squad and she achieved that last week when she was named for April's training camp in Melbourne.
Woods' selection was fitting reward for several years of strong WNBL form, persistence and hard work. Now, she has yet another achievement to highlight her rise.
"I feel like everyone dreams of playing for the Opals but I'd never even told anyone other than Shannon that it was a goal because I thought it was so unattainable," Woods told WNBL Weekly.
"It is quite surreal. To be in the conversation is awesome but to be named in a squad when a year ago I thought that was never going to happen is amazing.
"It's something I'll reflect on more after the season, for now my focus is on the team and winning a championship for Townsville."
After establishing a WhatsApp message from an unknown number was in fact the Australian coach and not spam, the phone call with Brondello 'was a bit of a blur.'
"We obviously have a young team (in Townsville) and she just thought I'd done a good job keeping us together, getting others involved, likes the way I'd played and noticed over the last couple of years that I'd got a lot better," Woods explained.
"She was excited to bring that pick and roll playing and passing into camp."
The 21-player Opals camp will gather in Melbourne in April to begin preparations for a trans-Tasman series against New Zealand then the FIBA Asia Cup in July.
Eight is great for Wilson
Grand Finals are always bursting with great stories and it's hard to look past WNBL games record Kelly Wilson who will this week contest her eighth decider.
Fresh out of the AIS, Wilson was a rookie on powerful Sydney teams, think the likes of Trish Fallon, Belinda Snell, which went down to the Dandenong Rangers in consecutive years in 2003-04 and 2004-05.
It'd be nearly a decade until she reached the final day of the season again, a key piece in Bendigo's inaugural title in 2012-13 and back-to-back championship in 2013-14. She, and Bendigo, fell to the Fire the following year.
Once the Grand Final moved from a standalone game to a best-of-three series Wilson quickly experienced that too, with Townsville in the first-ever series that went to a decider in 2017-18. The next year, she'd play for Canberra and win title No. 4.
Season 2024-25 marked a return to post-season action for Wilson who last played finals in March 2022 when Canberra's semifinal series was cut short by the league, amid a COVID outbreak, and Perth were advanced to the Grand Final.
The 41-year-old, who this season became the all-time assists leader, says Grand Finals are tough to make and the Spirit's current campaign, for a 20-3 record, isn't lost on her.
"When you're younger and exposed to that (Grand Finals) early you maybe don't necessarily realise how hard it is to make Finals let alone a Grand Final," Wilson said.
"Now at this age, I appreciate it more. I understand how much work and effort goes into getting through a season and actually making a Grand Final and what it takes to get there.
"The three-game series just adds another level of difficulty to it because it becomes a who can make adjustments quickly."
A fresh-faced teen in her first WNBL Grand Final, life looks different for Wilson, albeit still fresh faced, in her eighth crack.
She is mum to four-year-old Ted and teaches full time at Bendigo South East College, working in their Athlete Development Program.
"It's with great difficulty I fit teaching into the WNBL season but work are so supportive, I've worked there for over 15 years and I'm extremely grateful for their support," she said.
"A lot of the time my day starts really early, the kids train before school so I might work 6am-9, go to Bendigo training, train and then go back to work and teach classes in the afternoon."
What a privilege it is to watch Wilson each and every round as she continues to make history and cement herself in rare air; her place in another Grand Final is truly something to cherish.
Sky's the limit for Ally
A straight-sets finals exit for Perth was bookended by deserved recognition for Lynx star and Paris Olympian Ally Wilson.
Wilson was named in the Opals squad last Tuesday and days later inked a training contract with Chicago Sky ahead of the new WNBA season.
The 30-year-old guard led the Lynx in points, steals, assists, field goal percentage and minutes this season, averaged 15.7 points, 4.8 assists and 4.7 rebounds in #WNBL25.
It's been an incredible few years for Wilson, who was without a WNBL contract in 2021-22 until she replaced the pregnant Leilani Mitchell at Bendigo. Expanding into 3x3, where she won bronze with the Gangurrus at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, has elevated and evolved Wilson's game but she must also take credit for her commitment, work ethic and application following a time when her professional career was at a crossroads.
Final(s) thoughts
Players and coaches who know Grand Finals better than most share their insights on Bendigo vs. Townsville with WNBL Weekly.
Leilani Mitchell - 4x WNBL champion, Rachael Sporn Medallist (2016-17, 2020):
"I'm going with the underdogs, Townsville who will need all their players to be at the top of their game, and I think it will be an intense match-up. Bendigo has some great players and a lot more experience, but Townsville has some fire power and I don't think they've played to their full potential yet. Not to mention Shannon (Fire coach Shannon Seebohm) who does a great job preparing his players and will have a plan A, B, C and D. Grand Final MVP will be Nia Coffey because her athleticism will be very hard for Bendigo to match. She's playing at a high level, can score inside and out and has raised her game in finals."
Tom Maher - 9x WNBL championship coach:
"I like Townsville but can't look past Kelsey Griffin. She's a force. Even if she's not being a star her work rate is huge and incessant. It's a bump here, a push there, she works to rebound - not many do that. I think Townsville have a really good team approach, they're really teamie [sic] and playing for one another. Not that Bendigo aren't but Townsville are exceptional in that area. My brain says Bendigo but I like Townsville."
Natalie Hurst - 7x WNBL champion, Rachael Sporn Medallist (2009):
"Townsville for me because of Nia Coffey. She's the x-factor right now but you also can't focus on her too much because they're such a good team they've got other players who will pop up."
Keely Froling - Dual WNBL champion and Geelong United captain:
"I'm a bit torn due to conflicts of interest - my twin sister Alicia plays for Townsville and some of my best friends play for Bendigo! It will definitely go to three games and I think coaching is going to have a big impact with who can make the best adjustments throughout the series. MVP? Nia Coffey."